


Trust You The Most

by NeoCopperTechnology



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Angst, Cat/Human Hybrids, Catboys & Catgirls, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Hybrids, M/M, Past Abuse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-31
Updated: 2016-09-06
Packaged: 2018-08-12 05:47:54
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 9
Words: 52,540
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7922908
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NeoCopperTechnology/pseuds/NeoCopperTechnology
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Do Kyungsoo ran a shelter for hybrids, but had never really considered keeping one of his own. Kai was left chained to Kyungsoo's front doors, abused so badly that he wouldn't let anyone get near him. It's a slow process, learning how to trust someone again.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A True White Hybrid

 

Thirty years ago, China successfully genetically modified humans by splicing feline DNA with human DNA creating the hybrid species.

Each hybrid produced had a serial number, papers of DNA and lineage, and a name.

All this information was stored in a tiny microchip surgically implanted under the skin, on the back of each hybrid’s left hand. It was very safe, and each successful hybrid made was one hundred percent accounted for.

Within a couple years, other genetic testing labs, companies, and even some universities got a hold of the secret to functional human-hybrids, and the hybrid population exploded.

No longer were there only felines, but canines, rabbits, mice, foxes, deer…even winged hybrid, (human DNA crossed with dove).

It didn’t take long for underground hybrid labs to start springing up, and thousands of unregistered hybrids were being created and trafficked all over Asia and the rest of the world.

For a registered, papered hybrid, it could cost a fortune. For an unregistered, common black cat with no papers, no microchip, and no identification number, their lives could be sold for very little, in a back alleyway, to people who probably didn’t intend to care for the hybrid at all. An unregistered hybrid was lucky if it got taken in by a family with the money to spare and a bleeding heart, but most of them are neglected strays. Some were taken in by pleasure houses and taught to be escorts, some were raised just to be auctioned for a high price to people who only intended use them for sexual purposes.

Do Kyungsoo spent his life fighting for the unregistered hybrids, and straight out of college he opened the Exotic Hybrid Rescue, in Seoul, South Korea, in the year 2028. The rescue took in unregistered hybrids, gave them medical attention if they needed it, got them registered with the Korean government, got them an identification number, and a microchip. After that process, which could take up to six months, the hybrid was ready to be re-adopted.

Kyungsoo’s Exotic Hybrid Rescue had done so well in the last nine years, he had been able to open two more branches in Incheon and Busan. Because of the programs he created, he had been able to rehabilitate and rehome hundreds of previously unregistered hybrids across Korea, and he felt himself a very successful man.

 

~

 

Do Kyungsoo woke up on a Sunday morning to the sound of his cell phone ringing from the kitchen. The light in his bedroom was dark gray, perfect for sleeping in, and he turned his head to the cooler side of his pillow, groaning. Along with his ring tone, he could hear the rain from outside, the tapping of water droplets hitting and running down the glass. He didn’t move, fully intent on letting the phone go to voice mail.

It was a Sunday.

Sehun and Joonmyun knew it was his one day off this week, and whatever it was, they could handle it. Today, he was going to sleep in, and then go visit his brother and parents for lunch. That was his plan and he intended on sticking with it.

Eventually, the phone went silent, and the only thing heard was the sound of the rain outside. He sighed, smiling, ready for more sleep.

Not one minute later, the phone started to ring again.

Kyungsoo grumbled, and reluctantly pulled himself out of bed. Wearing nothing but his boxers, he left his room and wandered through his living room and into the kitchen, where his phone sat in a glass bowl at the edge of the counter with his car keys as well.

The phone had stopped ringing by the time he had gotten to it, and he immediately knew something was wrong when he peered at the screen. He had seven missed calls. Three from Joonmyun, and four from Sehun. None of them were from the work phone, which means neither of them were at the shelter yet.

Kyungsoo looked at the time, and noted that the rescue was supposed to open an hour ago, and that his team had been trying to contact him for the last half hour.

He didn’t have to wait long before Sehun was calling him again. This time he picked up.

“Sehun?” Kyungsoo greeted in a sleepy voice, and then cleared his throat, “what’s happening?”

“ _Now_ you pick up!” Sehun yelled into the phone, “Hyung— he finally answered!” he said away from the receiver, to Joonmyun probably, then came back to yell into the phone at Kyungsoo again.

“Kyungsoo-Hyung, someone abandoned a hybrid here last night, and they literally _chained_ _him_ to our _front door_. He’s extremely aggressive and won’t let us get near him. He’s already bitten Joonmyun-Hyung, and we can’t get into the facility, and the others are waiting to be fed,” he said quickly, “I know it’s your day off, but we need your help.”

“Did you call Yixing?” Kyungsoo asked, rubbing his eyes, and yawning.

“His office doesn’t open for another few minutes, we’ve left him voicemails but…” he trailed off for a moment, “Kyungsoo, I’ve never seen another hybrid act like this one. He’s been abused pretty badly, and he absolutely will _not_ let us go near him.”

Kyungsoo sighed. So much for his lazy day off, he didn’t even have the time to make himself a cup of coffee.

“Okay, I’ll be down there in a few, just sit tight,” he said. Sehun thanked him before they both hung up. Kyungsoo left his phone in the bowl and turned to go back to his room to change. He didn’t have time for coffee, he didn’t have time for a shower; he needed to be at work. To tame down his wild black bed-head he slipped a cap on. It was raining anyway.

Kyungsoo put on some worn skinny jeans, a clean tee-shirt, and a jacket before grabbing his phone and keys and leaving his apartment. He slipped on his shoes in his front entryway, and locked the door after him as he left.

He left his apartment and made his way to the elevator, dialing Yixing’s cellphone number by heart.

Zhang Yixing is not quite a doctor, and not quite a vet. He’s a doctor that specializes in hybrid care. He used to work for the original lab that created the hybrids species, and he moved to Korea to open his own clinic in Seoul around the same time Kyungsoo started his first rescue.

The two of them made a deal together. Yixing’s clinic works for Kyungsoo’s rescue, and vice versa. Whenever someone brings a hybrid to Yixing, and they can’t afford to pay the bills to fix their pet, they surrender the hybrid to the clinic. Yixing heals them all up, then sends them to Kyungsoo’s rescue to be re-homed, and whenever one of Kyungsoo’s hybrids gets sick or hurt, Yixing is the first one Kyungsoo calls.

The phone rings a couple times, and then Yixing’s voice is heard.

“Good morning, Kyungsoo!” Yixing greets him cheerily over the phone, “It’s not every Sunday that I get a call from you.”

“Hey, good morning,” Kyungsoo starts, still tired, “Where are you?”

“In my car, on my way to work. Why?” he asks.

“Someone dropped a hybrid off at our facility, and now the morning crew can’t get in. Sehun said they chained him to our front door, and that he already bit Joonmyun,” Kyungsoo explained, “I’m leaving my place now to go and help them. If he’s attacking people, I might need a sedative—” then he added, “—just in case.”

“Yikes, yeah, I’ll get you a syringe first thing when I get there. _Wild_ ,” he mused, “Do you want to come pick it up, or should I get Minseok to drop it off?” he asked.

“I told Sehun I’d be there as soon as I can, so if someone is there who can bring it to me, that would be great,” Kyungsoo said.

“Sure, no problem,” Yixing answered, “I can come down to give the new one a checkup after my lunch break, around one.”

“Sounds great. Thanks, Hyung,” Kyungsoo said, and then the two hung up. By the time the conversation was over, Kyungsoo had ridden the elevator all the way down to the basement garage beneath his apartment building, and had made his way to his car.

 

~

 

The drive from Kyungsoo’s apartment to his work only took about seven minutes (fifteen with bad traffic, and five if the street lights were on his side). The rain had subsided to a drizzle for now, and Kyungsoo pulled up to park on the street just outside his work building, right behind Joonmyun’s van. Kyungsoo turned off his vehicle and got out, stepping into the cold. Sehun appeared from around the side of Joonmyun’s van to greet him.

“Sorry about calling you here on your day off,” Sehun said, and Kyungsoo grunted in response, only a little annoyed. It wasn’t the first time this has happened, and it won’t be the last either. The boss’s work is never done.

“Where’s Joonmyun-Hyung?” Kyungsoo asked.

“Here,” said Joonmyun’s voice. Kyungsoo turned and saw the older man sitting in the middle seat of his van, a towel pressed to his hand, “That one has a mean bite,” he said and gestured to the front of the building. Kyungsoo turned to look and saw a figure by the front door hunched over, squatting close to the ground. True to Sehun’s word, there was a thick silver chain locked around the front door handles, leading to the poor hybrids neck. Kyungsoo walked up to the open van door and Joonmyun peeled the towel off his hand to show his boss.

Kyungsoo whistled low at the sight of Joonmyun’s bloody hand. The hybrid had got him good, breaking the skin right at the webbing where the thumb and index finger meet.

“ _Man_ , Joon, you can’t work today. You have to go to the hospital and have that looked at,” Kyungsoo sighed, “He drew blood, and we don’t know if he’s got some disease or something. You may have to get shots.”

Even though Joonmyun had been injured, he still looked pretty calm. Then again, it wasn’t the first time any of them had been bitten on the job before. When you choose to work with creatures such as hybrids, you have to remember that while they are half human, they are also half animal, and sometimes have a tendency to react like animals. All of them have been bitten or scratched at least once at work.

“I know,” Joonmyun sighed, “I was just waiting for you to come and see the damage.”

“Yixing’s intern is bringing us a sedative right now, I’ll get him to take you to the hospital,” Kyungsoo said, and then he turned to the main building of his hybrid shelter. He dug into his pocket and fished out the bulky set of keys for his work. A key for every door, safe, and lockbox in the whole facility. He plucked out one gold key among the rest, even though most of the keys looked the same, and handed it to Sehun.

“Go in through the back doors and start breakfast for the ones inside, I’ll see about this one,” Kyungsoo said. Sehun took the keys and set off at a jog to go around the side of the building, and Kyungsoo started walking up to the front doors to talk to the hybrid.

“Be careful,” Joonmyun called to him as he walked away.

The hybrid on the ground saw him coming closer and he stood up defensively, his ears flat back against this head, and his hands at his throat. Kyungsoo slowed his pace as he got nearer, and his breath got caught in his lungs as he got his first real good look at this hybrid.

It was the first time Kyungsoo had ever seen a white cat hybrid. The rarest breed of feline hybrid they can make.

Common blacks and Havana browns are the number one seen hybrids, and make up more than seventy percent of feline hybrid population. Next come the tabby breeds, ranging from dark brown, to bright orange, and to the rarer dilute. Then there are the long haired cats, like Maine coons and Persians, which usually have big, pointed ears and thick fluffy tails (Because of their long fur, they are sometimes mistaken for canines). But even the long haired and diluted breeds are more common than a pure white cat, and this hybrid was a _true_ white feline.

His wet hair was pale blonde all the way to the root. His long white tail was thrashing back and forth and his white ears were pressed flat against his head. He was soaked all the way through with mud and rain water. His wet clothes clung to his slender frame; his left eye was purple and swollen shut, and the left corner of his mouth was busted too. He had recently been in a fight, or had been beaten.

The hybrid looked like he hadn’t slept well in weeks. He had a thick black collar around his neck, and his fingers were laced into the front of it, trying to hold it away from his throat like it was too tight. Attached to the collar was the industrial strength chain which was then looped through the door handles, and locked with a padlock.

The hybrid hissed threateningly when Kyungsoo stepped too close, his one hazel eye glaring.  A deep growl started in his throat as the human approached. He showed his sharp teeth, and thrashed his tail back and forth aggressively, his ears still flat to his head. Kyungsoo lifted both his palms up defensively.

“Hey, now. I’m not going to hurt you, I just want to help,” he said, “What’s your name?” Kyungsoo asked.

“ _Get_. _Away_. From _me_ ,” the hybrid spat, “I don’t _want_ your help.”

“Are you sure?” Kyungsoo asked, his voice dropping to an even more soothing and calm tone, “That collar looks pretty uncomfortable, would you like me to take it off?” he asked and took one more step closer. The hybrid took a step to the side, the chain clinking as it lifted off the ground.

“Don’t touch me!” the frightened hybrid nearly screamed, “If you come any closer, I’ll bite you too!” he threatened darkly, his chest puffing with his breaths. Kyungsoo let his eyes run down the hybrid’s body once more. He just then noticed that the poor thing wasn’t wearing any shoes, and his toes were nearly blue. He looked back up at the feline’s face and realized his face was a little pale as well.

“Oh man…” Kyungsoo whispered to himself, “What happened to you…?” he asked slowly. The hybrid’s good eye flickered, he swallowed, and Kyungsoo saw the way the collar bobbed when his throat muscles tried to work.

Kyungsoo heard a car pull up, and he turned away from the cat.

“I’ll be right back,” he told the hybrid, and he turned to jog down to the newest arrival, and to Joonmyun who had gotten out of his van and shut the door. Kyungsoo ran to the car as the window rolled down.

“Hey Kyungsoo,” said Minseok, “I see you have a problem?” he said as he leaned over to look at the hybrid still locked to the front doors of the shelter.

“ _Yeah_ , and he’s pretty aggressive,” Joonmyun said, showing off the bite on the inside of his hand, Minseok  winced, “Can you take me to the hospital?” Joonmyun asked. Minseok nodded, and reached inside his jacket to pull out the capped syringe filled with clear sedative. He handed it to Kyungsoo, who immediately put it in his jacket pocket, hiding it.

“That should knock him out for about two or three hours,” he said.

“Thank you, Minseok, and tell Yixing thanks too,” Kyungsoo added before turning to Joonmyun, “I’ll cover you for today, just so Sehun isn’t alone,” he said. Joonmyun nodded.

“The new girl comes in at noon, so you’ll have more help then,” he said as he got into the passenger’s side of Minseok’s car, “Be careful with that one,” he added again. Kyungsoo nodded and the two drove away.

Kyungsoo took out his phone and called Sehun.

“What’s up?” Sehun asked, “Did you get him?”

“No, he won’t let me near him. I still intend to sedate him, but I need a distraction,” Kyungsoo said, “Go into the janitors supply closet, and get the big bolt cutters. You’re going to open the front doors from the inside, and cut the chain, then while he’s distracted I’m going to stick him with the needle,” Kyungsoo said ,”Don’t open the doors until you hear my voice. We may only get one shot to do this,” he said. Sehun agreed, and they both hung up. Kyungsoo pocketed his phone as he walked back up the short distance to the front doors and to the hybrid.

He was crouching again, and when Kyungsoo approached he stood up, and stumbled a little, his back pressed into the side of the building. It almost seemed like Kyungsoo could just wait a couple minutes and the poor thing would pass out on his own. His whole face looked even paler than it did a few minutes ago.

“How would you like to come inside and have a nice, hot meal, hmm?” Kyungsoo said, voice still smooth and soothing, “We can get you out of those wet clothes…and I can make up a bed in there, just for you.”

When he said the words ‘hot meal’, the hybrid’s eyes flickered, and his tongue poked out to lick his bloodied lips, but when he said the word ‘bed’ the mood changed again and the hybrid lashed out, tugging at the chain and his collar.

“Hey, _hey_ , stop! You’re going to hurt yourself!” Kyungsoo yelled, holding out his hand and taking a step forward. The cat hissed again, and this time lunged forward in an attempt to bite Kyungsoo.

But Kyungsoo saw it coming and he took his chance; he dodged, and wrapped his free arm around the hybrids neck, trapping him and both of his hands. With his free hand, he uncapped the syringe in his pocket with his thumb. Immediately, the cat yowled at the physical contact, and dug his claws into Kyungsoo’s arm. Kyungsoo jabbed the needle deep into the hybrid’s shoulder, pushing the plunger down and releasing the whole dose into him.

Almost as immediately as he had grabbed him, Kyungsoo flung him away, heart pounding, empty syringe in his hand. The two stumbled away from each other and the hybrid released his hold on his collar to hold his arm where Kyungsoo stabbed him. The hybrid wobbled on his feet, his breath coming out in wheezes.

“It’s going to be okay,” Kyungsoo cooed, and he watched hybrid’s one pupil dilate, becoming round and soft. His face fell into confusion and then exhaustion. It only took a few heartbeats for the drug to take its effect on the poor cat’s body, “It’s going to be okay,” he repeated softly, and he watched the white hybrid’s knees finally buckle as he fell to the cold, wet asphalt. Kyungsoo came forward, no longer worried about being bitten, and grabbed the cat’s shoulders before he could fall to the ground completely.

The hybrid tried to push him off, but his arms were weakening by the second, and his breath was coming out in shorter and shorter breaths. His good eye was locked onto Kyungsoo’s face, and he looked so afraid; the human threaded his fingers into the cat’s blonde hair to hold his head up, and the cat’s body trembled in his arms.

Kyungsoo heard the tumblers in the front door unlock.

“It’s okay. It’s safe now,” Kyungsoo spoke loudly, both to Sehun and to the terrified hybrid losing consciousness in his arms. Sehun pushed the doors open as far as they could go. The bolt cutters were shimmied through the open slot and Kyungsoo heard Sehun grunt as he tried to cut through the metal chain.

Kyungsoo stroked the hybrid’s blonde hair back out of his face, and kept whispering encouragements to him. Kyungsoo watched him fight the sedative, his hazel eye slipped in and out of focus for a few moments, before it slipped closed completely. His whole body relaxed, going dead limp, and Kyungsoo pulled him closer, hefting the heavy male into his arms. Sehun got the chains undone just as Kyungsoo managed to stand up, holding the weight of the drugged hybrid in his arms.

Sehun opened the doors for him, and Kyungsoo made his way in, the chains dragging after him. Sehun picked up the chains, and followed Kyungsoo through the reception room and back towards the kennels.

“We’ve got to get the collar off of him,” Kyungsoo said.

“And get him out of those wet clothes,” Sehun added.

They rushed him to a quarantine room all the way in the back of the facility, past the kitchen, laundry room, and kennels where all the other hybrids were waiting, probably wondering why breakfast was so late today.

Once in the private quarantine room, Kyungsoo gently set the white cat down on the twin sized cot, and rolled him onto his side to see about the collar. There was no plastic or metal buckle in the back like a normal collar would have, there was only a small padlock that could only be opened by the keyholder. It was not a fashion collar; it was an actual bondage collar.

“Go get the bolt cutters again,” Kyungsoo ordered softly. Sehun rushed out of the room, and Kyungsoo set to work peeling the wet clothes off the limp boy’s figure.

Sweatshirt first, then shirt, and Kyungsoo’s stomach lurched when he saw the state of this hybrid’s body. The scars, the bruises, and…the boy was more than just slender, he was _starved_.

His collarbones jutted out, his sternum, and every rib was visible through his pale skin.

Along with his state of neglect, it was hard to ignore the black and purple bruises all over him. His face wasn’t the worst of it. Arms, legs, stomach, neck. Some bruises were older and fading, but most were big and fairly fresh, they looked tender and painful.

Kyungsoo was burning. Someone had hit this cat over and over. It was no wonder why he didn’t want any of them to touch him.

Kyungsoo had just managed to peel the dirty jeans off the boy’s legs when Sehun came back into the room.

“Holy shit,” Sehun breathed out quietly as he reentered the room. The two of them stared at the boor creature for a second. Sehun had been working with Joonmyun and Kyungsoo for a little over a year now, and it was his first time seeing an abuse case like this. Kyungsoo silently reached for the cutters, and quickly rolled the boy onto his side so he could cut the padlock open.

Once the metal snapped, Kyungsoo peeled the thick leather off the hybrid’s neck, and to his disgust he saw the skin beneath was sickly white, indicating that he had been wearing this collar for a long time. There were small half-moon marks under the collar, where the cat’s own nails had dug in to pull the collar away from his throat. The back of his neck was bruised too.

The lighter skin on the front of his neck immediately started to turn pink once the collar was removed.

“This poor creature,” Kyungsoo breathed, “He probably had trouble breathing, and eating,” Kyungsoo said as he reached forward and pulled the hybrid to lay on his back again, his matted tail flopping lifelessly over the side of the cot. His head turned to face them, and Kyungsoo swept the long hair out of his face again with tender fingers. It was just then that Kyungsoo noticed how beautiful this hybrid was; even with his sunken features, swollen lip, and black eye, the features of the unmarred half of his face were so refined.

High cheek bones, attractive eyes, pouted lips. His white ears were tall, and faced forward.

A creature this beautiful and rare…it hurt Kyungsoo to see that someone had beaten and tortured something so perfect.

“Why would someone do this?” Sehun asked, and Kyungsoo caught himself lightly stroking the hybrid’s cheek, watching his chest rise and fall slowly.

“Because some people are sick fucks who don’t care that it’s a living creature, and get off on seeing them in pain,” Kyungsoo said lowly, before he turned and stood up from the floor. Sehun looked shocked to hear his normally composed boss curse like that.

Kyungsoo pulled a blanket out from the cabinets at the foot of the cot and draped it over the white feline’s naked body, tucking him in.

“Come on,” Kyungsoo said with a sigh, “Let’s feed the others. I’ll come back to check on this one later.”

 

~

 

The Exotic Hybrid Rescue facility was divided into three kennels: felines, canines, and others (Rarer hybrids like mice, bunnies, and non-domesticated animals). The canines were fed first, then the felines, then the others. After the others had received breakfast, the canines were let out into the back courtyard for morning exercise, but because it was raining, everyone had to stay inside today.

The kennels were not very big, but each one had a cot and a toilet, and no one had to share their kennel space. In the middle of each kennel room, there was a common area with some couches, and a television, so the hybrids could walk about freely within their own kennel, and interact with each other, or they could stay in their own individual kennels, it was their choice. The reason for the separation of species was for their own safety, some cats didn’t get along well with the dogs, and vice versa.

After Kyungsoo and Sehun had finished opening, feeding everyone, and making sure that any accidents through the night had been cleaned up, they opened their doors to the public. Kyungsoo went back to the breakroom, yawning, to put on a pot of coffee, and Sehun stationed himself at the front desk, answering phone calls, and greeting the people who walked through the front doors to come and look at the shelter hybrids.

After pouring water into the top of the coffee maker, Kyungsoo left that to brew while he went to his private office to grab a chip scanner, a small device about the size of a large cell phone, and a nail cleaning kit before he wandered back into the quarantine room to check on their latest arrival.

Kyungsoo found that the poor cat was still completely knocked out, but he was breathing fine. Searching for his left hand, Kyungsoo examined the back of it to find scarring where a chip should be. He ran his thumb over it to feel, and he was saddened to find that the hybrid had no microchip in the back of his hand. The small scars there indicated that there was once a chip there, but that it had been removed.

This was a good sign, and also a bad sign. It meant that, at some point, this hybrid did have a chip, which meant he was not engineered illegally, and that he probably had papers and an identification number, somewhere. Just to make sure, Kyungsoo swiped the scanner over the back of the hybrid’s hand, it usually beeped once when it read the chip, but it was perfectly silent, meaning there was no chip to be found.

Kyungsoo cursed and sat back to survey this poor creature again. A microchip usually contains not only the hybrid’s information, but also the owners’ information too, in case the hybrid got lost or ran away, the chip could be scanned and the owners could be contacted.

The only way he could get any information now was if the hybrid knew anything and could tell him where he had been or who had owned him last. With no microchip, and no registration number, this hybrid was as good as a stray. He could not be legally adopted from Kyungsoo’s shelter until he he’s been seen a doctor to get vaccinations, and a new microchip and identification number.

Kyungsoo sighed and stat down on the floor by the white cat’s bed, leaving the chip reader on the floor and examining his claws instead.

He was disgusted to find that that cat’s nails had been removed at one point, and had started to grow back over time. Kyungsoo knew that being declawed is painful. Having your finger nails ripped out of your hands would be painful for anyone. Some hybrid’s claws never fully recover from it, and their fingers look grotesque and half formed, nubs of flesh where thick and long fingernails should be.

This one’s hands looked more like human fingers than kitty claws, the nails had been removed cleanly, and had luckily began to grow back alright. Kyungsoo knew they would return to their former strength in time.

Kyungsoo gently scraped the gunk out from under the cat’s nails, and used a file to soften and shape what he could of the claws.

Once he was done with both hands, Kyungsoo reached forward and stroked the cat’s face again.

After a moment, Kyungsoo stood up and pulled out his cell phone. He started to take pictures of the hybrid, for the future if and when he needed to file and abuse report.

Close ups of his face, neck, and hands, were taken, then Kyungsoo pulled off the blanket to photograph the poor hybrid in his entirety, from ears to toes, and every bruise in between.

Kyungsoo was going to roll him over again to get a picture of his equally abused backside, but the hybrids white ears twitched and the tip of his tail flicked for the first time.

Knowing that he was going to be waking up soon, Kyungsoo pulled the blanket back up and slipped his phone into his pocket. He left quarantine to return the chip scanner and nail kit. He dished the hybrid up a bowl of rice and chicken and grabbed a bottle of water for him out of the fridge as well.

“Sehun,” Kyungsoo said as he poked his head into the reception area, “Our feral friend is waking up, I’m going to go sit in quarantine with him for a while. I’ll call for you if I need backup,” he said, and Sehun nodded.

“I’ll keep an ear out for screaming,” Sehun answered and Kyungsoo walked down the hall again. When he returned to the quarantine room, the hybrid had rolled over onto his stomach, and his left arm was hanging off the side of the cot.

Kyungsoo quietly set the bowl of food and the water bottle on the bedside countertop, before leaving the room again to get himself a mug of coffee. He returned to quarantine to find the hybrid still lying face down in his bed, and Kyungsoo settled down to sit on the floor on the opposite wall, his back against the door, and as far away from the hybrid as the room allowed.

Once he was sitting, legs crossed and comfortable, he tucked into his cup of hot coffee, wrapping both hands around the hot ceramic. The coffee from the break room wasn’t very good, and there was no cream to put in it to make it taste better, but bad coffee was better than no coffee in Kyungsoo’s opinion.

The human sipped loudly, the sound making the feline’s ears twitch, and Kyungsoo watched as the drugged hybrid came back into consciousness. His nostrils flared as he smelled the food so close to his head, and the very tip of his tail started to flick back and forth. A low grumble came from the hybrid’s stomach, and he moved.

Kyungsoo held his breath as the cat slowly lifted his head.

It took a few moments before the boy’s senses came back and he looked around, his bleary eyes falling first onto the bowl of food next to his bed. He sat up slowly, groaning softly. He must be in pain from all the wounds all over his body.

Kyungsoo took another audible sip of his coffee, and the cat’s face immediately turned to the sound.

The cat immediately hissed, startling Kyungsoo. The traumatized creature flipped over, and backed himself into the corner of the bed, the blanket fell from his torso to pool in his lap, and his hands immediately went to his throat, but he wouldn’t find any leather collar there, only his own sensitive skin. The pupil of his good eye shuddered for a moment; slitting relaxing, then slitting again as his eyes stayed locked onto the human’s.

“Where am I?” the hybrid hissed, “How did I get here?” he gasped out, not taking his eye off Kyungsoo. The human slowly set his cup down and folded his hands in his lap.

“My name is Do Kyungsoo. This is the Exotic Hybrid Rescue, a shelter for abandoned hybrids. You were left at our front doors, remember?” the human said, “I had to sedate you to get you inside, and take off that awful collar. You’ve been asleep for a few hours.” the hybrid grabbed the blanket and pulled it closer, hiding his chest and body, his eye flickering, but never leaving Kyungsoo’s.

“A rescue…?” he trailed off, eyes flickering in confusion. “Why am I naked?” he asked, eye narrowing.

“Your clothes were soaked because of the rain, they’re being washed now.”

“…A-and the collar?”

“I threw it away,” Kyungsoo answered, “You’ll never have to see it, or wear it, again.”

Kyungsoo watched the cat’s shoulders relax a little bit, and he reached up again to touch his neck. He swallowed. His gaze flicked to the food, and his stomach let out a loud growl.

“Please, eat,” Kyungsoo said, and picked up his coffee cup again, “I don’t know what you’ve been through, but someone dropped you off here for a reason, and you can know that you’re safe here,” Kyungsoo said, “This is a safe place. Nothing, and no one, is going to hurt you while you’re with me,” Kyungsoo promised. The hybrid’s stomach growled a third time, and without hesitation he grabbed the bowl and started shoving the food into his mouth with his fingers.

Telling him to slow down would be fruitless, Kyungsoo thought, he was just happy the cat would eat at all. Sometimes new arrivals wouldn’t eat for days, due to uneasiness and unfamiliarity, before finally conceding after they got comfortable (or hungry enough).

Kyungsoo sipped his coffee while he watched the boy stuff his face with rice and chicken. By the way this cat ate, it was clear that his meals were something he cherished. In less than a minute, the bowl was empty, every grain of rice devoured.

The hybrid set the bowl on the bedside table again, as he licked his fingertips. There was a moment of silence, their eyes locked again, and the cat opened his mouth to speak, but then floundered and closed it, his white ears flicking backwards. Kyungsoo tilted his head to the side, silently questioning the cat. After a quiet minute the hybrid finally spoke.

“May…may I please h-have more?” he whispered, like he almost didn’t want to be heard, and he didn’t want to ask. Kyungsoo nodded with a hum, and the cat’s eyes widened a bit in surprise, and Kyungsoo could see a tiny sliver of his left eye.

“After you answer some of my questions, I’ll get you more,” Kyungsoo prompted, “Okay?” the hybrid swallowed thickly, but nodded. Kyungsoo uncurled his legs and stretched them out against the floor, his slight movement made the hybrid tense up again, before relaxing when Kyungsoo relaxed.

“How long were you waiting outside in the rain?” he asked. It took a moment before the other answered, his eye wandering to the floor.

“I don’t know…” he answered, “I don’t even know how I got there…” he trailed off and his eyebrows furrowed even more, “He… he told me that if I ever tried to run away again that he would kill me,” the hybrid whispered. Kyungsoo’s heart thumped in his chest and he swallowed.

“Is ‘he’ the one that put all those bruises on you?” Kyungsoo asked. The hybrid’s ears lowered, and his whole body cowered deeper into the corner.

“If he knows that I told you…I’ll get in more trouble,” the hybrid whispered.

“He can’t get you anymore,” Kyungsoo said again, “I _promise_. You’re safe from him now, and you can trust me.”

“My master…” the hybrid answered, and swallowed, “…he beats me after he uses me…l-last night….” it was like just speaking these words out loud struck fear through him, “h-his friends were there…he made me p-please them…then he hit me with the b-buckle of his belt,” the cat slowly drew his legs up to his chest more, shrinking into a ball, getting more quiet with every line.

It was as if every fiber of his brain was telling him to keep his mouth shut, because he knew he was going to get beat for speaking out of turn. If his master found out he had told someone, he was going to get it bad. But his mouth just kept moving. The hybrid was so overwhelmed with warm food, clean smells, and this human’s low, angelic voice… the words kept tumbling from his lips like rain.

“I usually pass out when it’s over,” he croaked, and swallowed again, “I usually wake up back in my cage… but this time when I woke up it was dark, and cold, and wet, and I was alone and locked up outside in the rain,” his eyes started to shine with wetness, “I-I thought I was being punished for something, even though I t-try not to make him mad…” he whimpered, then his gaze locked back onto Kyungsoo’s again, and if Kyungsoo’s heart wasn’t broken for the hybrid yet, it surely happened then, when Kyungsoo saw the raw fear and emotion behind the cat’s good eye.

“I don’t know how I got here,” he repeated, his voice quivering “He’s going to be angry when he finds out I’m gone, and he’s going to come looking for me,” his eyes disappeared into slits again, “I don’t wanna go back there… I don’t want him to hit me again…” he whimpered. Kyungsoo set his coffee cup down.

“What is your name?” Kyungsoo asked.

“… _Kai_ ,” the hybrid responded. Kyungsoo laced his fingers together in his lap again, trying to keep his composure.

“Listen to me when I say this, Kai: you will _never_ have to see that man again. This place is a rescue for hybrids like you. The people here are here to _help_ you, and none of us will _ever_ hurt you. You are very safe here with me in this shelter, I promise,” Kyungsoo said calmly, even though he hated the person who did this to this creature to his core, “Whoever he was, I can make sure that you never see that man again,” Kyungsoo said calmly, reassuringly, “You’re free now,” he repeated, and the hybrid sniffed, but there was doubt in his face. There were a few more silent moments before Kyungsoo asked one more question.

“Do you know why your microchip was removed, Kai?” Kyungsoo asked. Kai’s face darkened even more, his eyebrows furrowing, and he reached up to rub his good eye.

“It was cut out of me when I was a kitten…” Kai said, “The men who took me didn’t want anyone to be able to find me. They said that, without the chip, I’ll never be able to find my family again…” he cried, _really_ cried for a few hard moments. Kyungsoo just wanted to reach out and hold the boy, let him cry for as long as he needed, take away his pain and his bruises. Make it all go away.

Kyungsoo stiffly got up from the floor. Kai’s face snapped up, right eye wide. The human walked towards the hybrid’s bed and Kai hissed and scrambled back as far as he could go, pressing himself into the wall again. Kyungsoo winced and hesitated when Kai hissed at him, before he slowly reached for the empty bowl on the bedside table. Kai watched his every movement, and relaxed a little when Kyungsoo stepped away, putting distance between them again.

“I’ll be back with more food for you in a few minutes,” Kyungsoo murmured quietly, and left the room, locking the door after him.

 

~

 

Kyungsoo asked Yixing not to come that day, but the next day. He thought that having Kai being poked and prodded by some stranger today would only be overwhelming, and he wasn’t about to risk Yixing getting bitten while he was giving the hybrid vaccinations.

Kai ate another full bowl of rice and chicken, and drank the entire water bottle, before going to sleep again. Kyungsoo locked the door to quarantine and shut off the light, giving the poor cat some peace and quiet to sleep for a while.

Kyungsoo left the shelter around noon, when the other coworker came in, to have lunch with his parents and brother like he had originally planned for the day. The sun had burned off the early spring rain, and the world smelled fresh and clean.

After lunch he kissed both his parents on the cheek and drove his brother back to his apartment. Kyungsoo debated on not going back to the kennels, he really didn’t have to, but he wanted to check on Kai again.

Imagining the pitiful creature alone and naked curled up in the dark made him turn his car wheel around and head back to his rescue.

Kai was startled awake when Kyungsoo flicked on the lights, and entered the room. At first he was disoriented, his golden eye like a tiny sliver, before his eyes settled onto Kyungsoo’s. The human stood in the open doorway and tossed the folded set of clothes on the bed, keeping his respected distance.

“I think these will fit you,” he said, “but your other clothes are in the dryer if you still want them later.”

Kai said nothing, but he reached forward to grab the grey sweat pants and black shirt, feeling the material between his fingers.

“I’m about to go home for the day,” Kyungsoo started, “Tomorrow, a friend of mine who’s a hybrid doctor is going to come and give you a checkup. You’re going to have to stay in this room until the checkup happens.”

“A doctor?” Kai asked quietly. Kyungsoo nodded.

“Yup, the doctor is going to come and see you. He’s a really nice man with a hybrid of his own. It’s safer for you if you stay separate from the other hybrids, just until the doctor gives you the A-Okay. If you, or any of the others, got sick we would have a much bigger problem on our hands,” Kyungsoo said with a soft, reassuring smile, “Later tonight, someone is going to come and bring you dinner. If you’d like to go take a bath or shower to get clean, I’ll stay and help you until you’re done,” Kyungsoo offered, and Kai’s eyes flicked up to meet his again, before he shook his head. Kyungsoo nodded in agreeance, understanding if Kai didn’t like water, or the idea of being naked.

“Okay, no bath tonight, but you’ll have to have one before we transfer you to the feline room,” Kyungsoo said, “I’m going to leave now. Good night, Kai. Sleep well, I’ll see you tomorrow for your checkup,” Kyungsoo said, Kai nodded again, still staying silent.

Kyungsoo left the room with a sigh, and even after he got back to his own apartment all he could think about was the poor creature, alone in quarantine, curled in a ball with his matted white tail, afraid and waiting for whatever was going to happen next.


	2. A Better Idea

 

A note was waiting on Kai’s quarantine door the following morning when Kyungsoo and Yixing got to the shelter. The note read:

‘ _Aggressive male feline. Refused dinner and breakfast. Wait for Doctor Zhang_.’

“That’s strange,” Kyungsoo murmured, “He’s been practically starved for months…and yesterday I fed him, he wolfed it down and then asked for more… I don’t know why he didn’t eat…”

“Nerves,” Yixing answered simply, with a shrug, “It’s a normal reaction. He’s probably scared, and he’s probably never seen a doctor before either.”

Kyungsoo didn’t respond, worry eating at him a little, before he told Yixing to wait there and he turned down the hall to go get Kai something to eat from the kitchen.

Kyungsoo entered the room first with the food and a bottle of water. Kai was startled from his slumber, scrambling to the corner of the cot. Kyungsoo was happy to see he was wearing the clean sleep clothes Kyungsoo had brought him yesterday. Once he caught sight of Kyungsoo, he stopped and relaxed a tiny bit, but he was still on high alert.

“Hungry?” Kyungsoo asked and held out the bowl. He wanted to see if Kai would take it from his hands, but the apprehensive feline didn’t. Kyungsoo set the bowl on the edge of the bed, before stepping back. After he had stepped away, Kai reached forward to take the food.

Kyungsoo spoke to Kai softly and Kai sat in the far corner, eating. Even though there was a fork, the cat ate with his hands, shoveling food into his mouth and dropping grains of rice in his lap. When the bowl was empty, the hybrid picked the final pieces off of his shirt front and popped them onto his tongue too. Not a grain uneaten.

Kyungsoo had filled Yixing in on Kai’s story before they even got to the shelter, and Kyungsoo reminded his friend to be very careful, and not to move too suddenly around this cat. Kyungsoo poked his head out of the room, and when he returned, a tall man came in after him. Kai’s eye widened with terror, and his tail bristled. He flicked his gaze to Kyungsoo, then to Yixing, as he backed into the corner farther.

“Oh my…”Yixing breathed out, as he saw Kai. Kyungsoo hadn’t lied, “It’s okay little one, I’m not here to hurt you,” the doctor said as he sat on the ground by the bed.

Yixing’s attitude was light and cheery; Kyungsoo stood by the whole time, as Yixing introduced himself and opened up his briefcase on the floor and laid out the instruments he was going to be using. A stethoscope, a thermometer, a flashlight, some needles and tubes; Kai peered over the edge of the bed to see; his tail had not relaxed at all.

Yixing never stopped speaking. He talked to Kai, the clearly late teenaged boy, like a small child. Kyungsoo was very grateful for Yixing, who spoke to Kai calmly, but animatedly, as he took his temperature, blood pressure, and listened to his lungs through the stethoscope.

“You’re name is Kai, right? How are you feeling? My name is Doctor Zhang. I’m going to take your temperature, open up…Ahh~ Oomp. Yes, good, good. Now, I’m just going to look inside your ears really quick with this light. Hmm…yep, all four ears look fine. Now, I’m just going to press this to your chest right here to listen—”

Kyungsoo and Kai both tensed when Yixing reached up to touch Kai with his hands, but miraculously, Kai did not react other than stilling.

“Good boy. Now, breathe in—“ Yixing took in a big breath, and then so did Kai, “…and breathe out _slow_ …” Yixing moved the stethoscope to Kai’s back, “And again, breath in—“

Kai was compliant through the whole checkup physical checkup, even when Yixing asked for his forearm to draw some of the cat’s blood. Kai watched Yixing put the needle in with hardly the bat of an eye, and watched his red blood run down the tubing and into the vial. It was over in seconds.

When Yixing set three more syringes on the table next to the bed, Kai couldn’t take his hazel eyes away from them.

“More needles?” he asked, his ears flicking backward.

“These ones are vaccines: flu, rabies, and tetanus. Everybody has to get them every three years. You, me, Kyungsoo, everyone! We all need to get our shots updated, so we don’t get sick, or get anyone else sick,” Yixing explained, “Do the needles scare you?” he asked. Kai shook his head a little.

“I just don’t want to be put to sleep again,” he whispered and his eyes darted to Kyungsoo, before looking away. Kyungsoo felt a wave of guilt crash over him.

“I’m sorry,” Kyungsoo murmured, and looked down at the ground.

“Ahh, I understand,” Doctor Zhang spoke, “None of these are going to make you sleep, in fact, this one might make you a little hyper,” Yixing said as he uncapped the yellow one, “Arm or leg?” he asked Kai, giving him the choice. Kai chose his arm, and turned to give Yixing the space. He watched Yixing’s every move, and every syringe as it was jabbed into his arm. With every needle, Kai jumped, but other than that he didn’t make a sound.

When it was done, Yixing rubbed Kai’s arm for a minute, to make sure the drugs didn’t get stuck in the muscle and give him a cramp.

“You did so well!” Yixing cried, “Such a brave cat.”

“Needles don’t scare me like belts and dogs do…” Kai murmured, making both of the humans look at each other. Kyungsoo’s face darkened. He didn’t know what Kai meant by that.

Yixing stood up and gave Kai a clean bill of health, and praised Kai again for being so good through the checkup. He told Kyungsoo that Kai had to wait forty-two hours for the vaccines to kick in before he could be around the other hybrids. Before the doctor left, Yixing reached down to ruffle Kai’s hair and ears, but Kai didn’t let him, he ducked away very quickly when the hand reached for him, and he avoided the touch. Kyungsoo noticed and felt a pang of pity for Kai, more than he had ever felt for another hybrid.

 

~

 

Kyungsoo was off of work the next day, but returned again on Wednesday bright and early with Joonmyun and another coworker to feed the hybrids breakfast, then open the rescue.

Joonmyun let Kyungsoo know that Kai refused to eat again yesterday.

“Was it because of the vaccines?” Kyungsoo asked.

“No. He just _refuses_ to eat what we give him. He hisses at everyone who comes in the door. I think you’re the only one he will take food from,” Joonmyun stated.

Kyungsoo let Joonmyun do the office stuff while he cooked and prepared breakfast for the creatures in the tiny kitchen down the hall from the kennels. As soon as the canines had all been fed, Kyungsoo loaded up an especially big bowl of hot breakfast and made his way down to quarantine to drop it off.

He woke up Kai in the process of entering his room, startling him as expected, but Kai relaxed when he saw it was Kyungsoo.

“Good morning,” Kyungsoo whispered, “Hungry?”

Kai’s eyes flickered as he watched Kyungsoo come forward and set the bowl on the edge of the cot, right at Kai’s feet. He was wearing a giant baggy shirt, and underwear; the sweatpants he was given were lying on the floor in a heap, probably kicked off the middle of the night. He immediately grabbed the dish, and shoved the first piece of food into his mouth.

Kyungsoo noticed that the swelling around Kai’s black eye had gone down, and he could open his right eye today.

“You weren’t here yesterday…?” Kai murmured through his full mouth.

“And _you_ didn’t eat yesterday,” Kyungsoo admonished, “You need to eat when people give you food, Kai,” Kai’s ears fell back shamefully at Kyungsoo’s tone, and he swallowed his mouthful.

“I don’t…trust the other people…” he murmured. Kyungsoo’s heart physically hurt for this hybrid, and he wondered just how many hardships he was pressured into. He cleared his throat.

“No, I wasn’t in yesterday,” he answered Kai’s question, “I was at my house. I have to go home and sleep sometimes, too,” Kyungsoo said with a friendly smile, “But I’m here for today, and for the rest of the week,” Kyungsoo watched Kai’s dirty tail flicked around to wrap around his feet, and his ears perked up. A small smile peeked around the corners of his mouth.

Kyungsoo noticed just then that his lip had almost fully healed too, but the ring of pale skin around his neck was still very visible.

Like a collar that they couldn’t take off.

 

~

 

The next day (after much coaxing) Kyungsoo managed to convince Kai to take a shower.

The hybrid was very reluctant about it about being naked around Kyungsoo, and about leaving the private room he had become very familiar with. Kyungsoo tried his best to make this feline feel secure, letting Kai take the blanket with him from his room, and making sure no one was in the hallway when they made their way to the showers.

Kai was surprised to see the individual shower stalls He pulled the shower curtain closed for Kai and stood outside while Kai washed his own hair, ears, and tail.

For years Kai had not known privacy, and had not been allowed to bathe himself, always under the supervision of his master, or someone else. It made Kai’s throat grow thick and made his meek ears flatten back with confusion, and thankfulness. It was the first shower Kai had taken alone in years, even though he wasn’t truly alone.  Kyungsoo stood outside the stall the whole time and handed the soaps and towel to him through the shower curtain, keeping his eyes averted.

When Kai was finished, and had been completely dried off, his ears and tail seemed to glow, but especially his tail.

The appendage looked fuller, and fluffier, no longer matted. The fuzzy wisps of snowy down looked absolutely touchable, but Kyungsoo didn’t dare reach out to touch, too afraid to hurt, or scare the fragile creature.

 

~

 

It became very clear to Kyungsoo, and _all_ of the staff, that Kai was just not mentally fit to be around the other hybrids.

Kyungsoo had stretched it out for as long as he could, he waited for Kai’s lip and eye to heal, he waited for the vaccinations to take effect, but after two weeks of keeping Kai isolated in quarantine, the rescue needed their private room back for another incoming patient. When Kyungsoo lead Kai into the feline kennel room, he had a full blown panic attack.

Kai was a little overwhelmed by the other hybrids, who rushed him to meet the newcomer and to get a look at his rare white fur, but that wasn’t what triggered it.

It was when he took a look at the cage-like kennels that Kai bolted. Kyungsoo went yelling after him, which didn’t help at all. Kai ran to reception, Kyungsoo was terrified he was going to get outside, but Kai skidded to a halt when he came face to face with an older female customer, looking to adopt.

She screamed.

Kai hissed and leapt backwards into another staff member who had run up from behind to subdue the loose hybrid. When he grabbed Kai by the scruff of his neck, Kai yowled, and bit down onto hard onto the man’s arm. The manic hybrid broke free and took off again back down the hall to quarantine.

The door to his room was still open, one of the staff members was inside cleaning and changing the sheets before the next hybrid could occupy it, and Kai ran in and all but dove under the cot, pressing himself as far into the corner as he could.

His eyes were the tiniest of slits, his tail was double its size and he was so crazed with fear and trauma that he wasn’t even able to speak, he just kept hissing and growling at every human who came in to try and help.

The more pairs of feet Kai could see, the more his anxiety rose. The other staff members were scaring Kai more and more, and after a couple minutes Kyungsoo ordered everyone to leave the room.

Kyungsoo shut the quarantine door, leaving just him and Kai in the room. Kyungsoo crouched down on the floor to see Kai, and when their eyes locked, the hybrid hissed at him…but he didn’t growl this time.

Kyungsoo kept his distance, and lay down completely on his stomach on the floor. He spoke softly and calmly to the terrified creature under the bed; after almost a half hour Kai came out from under the cot.

He crept up to sit on top of the bed, in the light, and immediately wrapped himself in the grey blanket and sat with his back pushed into the corner. His ears were hidden but his eyes were still in perfect cat-like slits, and he was on high alert.

Kyungsoo left the room.

After much fuss and discussion about how to properly handle this situation, the staff decided that Kai couldn’t stay at the shelter anymore, and Kyungsoo agreed. Someone suggested they transfer him to a different hybrid rescue, but Kyungsoo wouldn’t allow it, and they bounced around other options.

Kai needed a different atmosphere if he was going to get any better. The hybrid rescue needed their quarantine room back, and Kai couldn’t feasibly stay in the kennels with the other cats.

Kyungsoo took it upon himself foster Kai.

The hybrid would stay at Kyungsoo’s home while the human got together the right forms, paperwork, and jumped through all the necessary hoops to get the hybrid registered again. After some rehabilitation, Kai could come join the others at the shelter.

Sehun made a joke at that:

“Why don’t you just adopt him? You’re the only one he’ll take food from anyway.”

 

~

 

Kyungsoo had never really considered getting a hybrid of his own. There had been some fancy breeds that came through his shelter, and there had been a couple extra sweet cats he had considered for a moment, but so far Kyungsoo hadn’t been able to commit to one. Hybrids are expensive to keep, they’re basically another human being that needed to be clothed, fed, and cared for. They’re usually needy too, requiring lots of daily affection and doting.

Kyungsoo enjoyed his alone time, but he also loved having hybrids at his house short term. He enjoyed fostering strays and babysitting his friends’ hybrids while they went out of town. Kyungsoo had been known to keep a hybrid or two at his apartment for a couple days at a time when the kennels were just full to capacity, before a space opened back up and they could go live at the shelter again.

It’s not that Kyungsoo never wanted his own hybrid; it’s more that the right hybrid had yet to come into Kyungsoo’s life.

The thought of working with Kai one on one in his own home made him excited, and nervous. This hybrid had been severely traumatized, and Kyungsoo still knew very little about what happened to him.

After the emergency staff meeting, Kyungsoo took his lunch break, and pulled his car around back, so Kai wouldn’t have to walk through the front doors, and came back inside to collect the hybrid. Sehun kept the back door open for him to make a straight pathway for Kai’s exit, and Joonmyun and a good handful of staff had wandered into the hallway to watch the hybrid leave.

Most of them hadn’t even seen the white cat yet, who hid and growled when anyone other than Kyungsoo came into the room.

Kyungsoo stepped around the corner and told everyone to back up, before he opened the quarantine door.

Kai was sitting on the cot in the corner with his legs crossed. He still had the blanket around his shoulders and neck, but it wasn’t pulled up over his white ears and blonde head. His ears were alert and his eyes were wide, and when Kyungsoo entered the room he drew his legs up to his chest. The human could tell the boy was still shaken from the events of the last hour.

Kyungsoo left the door open, and he came forward to kneel on the floor by Kai’s bed.

“Kai, we don’t think it’s good for you to stay here anymore,” Kyungsoo started.

It was like breaking the news to a child, Kai’s face became and even more extreme with horror and confusion.

“You’re making me leave?” the poor cat whispered, and Kyungsoo could have sworn he saw Kai start to shake.

“No. Remember my promise? I’m going to take care of you now,” Kyungsoo said, and Kai’s large hazel eyes blinked down at him, “We’re going to go back to my house. It’s big, and open, and quiet. You’ll like it there,” Kyungsoo murmured, “There’re no cages, no needles, and no other hybrids, you’ll have the whole place to yourself,” he coaxed and offered his hand, palm up. He wasn’t sure if Kai would accept his hand, and he wasn’t surprised when Kai didn’t.

Kai didn’t know what it meant when Do Kyungsoo said he’d take care of him. Kai couldn’t remember meeting any human as gentle and respectful as Do Kyungsoo, and he didn’t know what was going to happen next, or where he was going to go, but he knew he had to take a chance with this human’s soft voice. The hybrid nodded, and slowly stood up off the bed, keeping the blanket secure around his shoulders. He looked uneasy, and uncertain, but on a leap of faith he nodded.

Kyungsoo smiled brightly and stood up from the floor when Kai asked when they were leaving.

“Now,” Kyungsoo answered, and he turned to the open door, “My car is just outside.”

 Joonmyun stepped back, and so did every other person in the hallway, when Kyungsoo came through the door first. Kai was right behind him, and the two slowly left the room. Kai held his breath as they crossed the threshold, his eyes locked on the black hair on the back of Kyungsoo’s head.

The female staff members all cooed when they saw Kai’s ears. Kai was startled the second he heard their voices, and he leapt forward into Kyungsoo, grabbing his arm.

Kyungsoo was surprised but he didn’t shake Kai off, the human took the feline’s hand and lead the hybrid down the hall and out of the building. Sehun stepped back as they passed through the back doors and into the sunlight. Kai’s pupils shrunk in reaction to the light, and he let go of Kyungsoo’s arm. Kyungsoo turned to look at him, and the way the natural sun hit his eyes made his hazel orbs look gold.

The silver car was only a few paces away from them, but Kai was staring at the patches of grass under his feet. Kyungsoo opened the back door of his silver Lexus for the hybrid, and Kai’s ears perked over at the sound.

“Come on,” Kyungsoo called to him, and Kai broke himself out of his reverie to get in the car. The inside smelled strange to Kai. Kyungsoo shut the car door after him, and walked around to get in the driver’s seat, he adjusted his rear view and he could see Kai in the corner of it.

“Seat belt,” Kyungsoo reminded him softly.

He was going to drive straight home, but watching Kai in the rear view mirror as he drove, turning his kitty head every which way to stare out the windows at the city of Seoul, and gasping at little things made him want to take the longer way home.

So he did.

Kyungsoo rolled down the windows and he laughed quietly as Kai immediately shut his eyes and started to smell, and feel the fresh air and wind in his ears. Kyungsoo could see Kai’s snowy tail moving with curiosity as he leaned his head out the window.

Kai’s curiosity had faded when Kyungsoo pulled into the parking garage beneath his apartment building. The dark parking structure was always cold, and the unfamiliar smells made Kai’s ears flick backwards and he drew his head back into the car. Kyungsoo parked his car in his usual space.

“We’re here,” he said as he turned off the car and got out. Kai exited the car too, bringing his blanket with him. His nose was working in over time, and both of his eyes darted every which way, “Come on,” Kyungsoo called softly, offering his hand again.

Kai didn’t take it this time either, but he followed closely behind Kyungsoo as they walked to the only elevator in the building. He was fine in the short elevator ride, his eyes looking at his refection in the mirror, nose still working to take in every smell. He jumped when the elevator dinged and the door slid open. Kyungsoo stepped out first and led the scared creature down the empty hall towards his apartment door, as he unlocked the door, he told Kai the rules.

“Take your shoes off at the front door. You can eat anything you’d like in the kitchen, but only in the kitchen. No food in the living room or bedrooms. And, the most important one, you can’t leave the apartment without telling me. Okay?” Kyungsoo asked. Kai nodded, and Kyungsoo opened the apartment door, letting Kai enter first.

Shoes were removed, and Kai stepped inside slowly, cautiously, his nose still working to taking in every smell.

“Go ahead and explore, it’s just you and I here,” Kyungsoo encouraged, and Kai crept down the front hall that opened up into the kitchen, living room, and dining room.

Kyungsoo put his keys, wallet, and cell phone in the glass bowl on the edge of the kitchen counter and stood back to watch Kai wander the living room, nose going crazy, and eyes darting everywhere.

Kyungsoo styled his spacious apartment elegantly, with black and white offset by small splashes of color. There were three suede couches, two black and one white, and a large flat screen mounted to the wall above the couch arrangement. Under the television was his small DVD collection, his sound system, and his Wii U. The apartment was one story, the dining room area had floor to ceiling windows which made the place feel so much more open. Pushed close to the large windows was a grand white piano that belonged to Kyungsoo’s grandmother. The small glass dining table that sat six was next to it, closer to the kitchen area. Beyond the piano, there was a small balcony terrace with some potted plants, and a couple outside lounging chairs.

“Want to come see your room?” Kyungsoo asked, and Kai’s whole body turned around to look at Kyungsoo with disbelief. Kyungsoo couldn’t contain his smile as he walked out of the front entryway, and passed the kitchen and dining room, down the eastward facing hallway with three doors, one was a bathroom, one was Kyungsoo’s home office with his personal desk and computer, and the other door was the guest bedroom, which would now be Kai’s room.

“Here you go,” Kyungsoo spoke as Kai followed him and stood outside the door.

There was a large queen sized bed that sat on a dark wooden frame with four posters, also from Kyungsoo’s grandmother, and a small matching dresser and two night stands. There was a window to the left with dark blue and white curtains that matched the blue comforter and white sheets.

“This is all mine?” Kai whispered in disbelief.

“Yep,” Kyungsoo smiled. Kai swallowed and brushed passed Kyungsoo to enter the room. He reached forward and touched one of the wooden posters at the corner of the bed, before he turned and settled his hazel orbs back onto Kyungsoo.

“This place is like…” he trailed off in awe, mouth open slightly, and looked around the small room again for inspiration before looking back at Kyungsoo, “…everything I have ever _dreamed_ of.”

“A room of your own?”

“A _bed_ of my own,” Kai answered, his hazel eyes looking up, “I haven’t been allowed to sleep in a bed in years…” he admitted. Kyungsoo’s heart sank, but he cleared his throat and swallowed, before he smiled again.

“You’re allowed to sleep anywhere in this house,” Kyungsoo said sympathetically, “If there’s anything you want or need…you can ask me for anything,” Kyungsoo spoke.

“Th-thank you,” the hybrid managed to say. Kyungsoo nodded with a gracious smile, it was the first time Kai had thanked him for anything.

“You’re welcome,” Kyungsoo beamed, and he turned to leave the room, “I’m going to see what I can make for us for lunch.”

 

~

 

Kyungsoo left the room, and Kai’s ears strained to hear the human walk away. He kept one ear angled to the door as he turned to the bed. The hybrid ran one hand over the crisp navy blanket and pressed down on the mattress, testing its comfort. He hesitated for only a second, before he jumped up to sit upon it, and its springs bounced under his weight, he looked around the room with bewilderment, then fell back to lay on the bed, his legs and tail dangling off the side.

He couldn’t really believe that he was going to stay here now.

The light flowing in from the window behind him made the whole room glow. It wasn’t a big room, but it was more space than Kai had ever had to call his own. They hybrid turned around to look out the window, and all he could see was the building directly across the street. Kai rolled and crawled over the bed, jumping off it, and pressing his face to the glass.

He could see a city street below him, with bright colored signs, and cars, and people. There was a loud clank from the kitchen, and Kai flinched a little, his head snapping to the entryway of his room.

He wondered if he was allowed to shut the door…

The hybrid left the window and poked his head out of the door of his new room. The two other doors in the hallway were open and Kai noticed that one was a bathroom. He slipped quietly across the hall and into the restroom, shutting the door and flicking on the light.

He liked how clean everything smelled.

Kai used the toilet, flushed, and then turned to the sink, coming face to face with his reflection again.

It was bizarre for him. He hadn’t gotten a good look at his refection in a few years, always being told to look at the floor, or catching glimpses but not anything substantial.

He didn’t know what to think of his refection, but he could tell he needed a shower.

His dirty blond hair was cow-licked and sticking up in some places. His light colored eyes, with their dark circles under them looked perpetually tired.

His eyes caught sight of his neck, and the prominent ring of discolored skin. Kai’s eyebrows furrowed and he leaned forward and touched the skin of his neck softly, and swallowed.

He hated it.

Kai started to scratch at the skin of his neck. His nails, which had taken months to grow back, were still so small and didn’t do very much damage. When Kai stopped, his neck was pink and covered in red marks.

His fingers hurt, and his neck hurt, and there were tears in his eyes. He glared at his own refection, before he couldn’t bear to look at himself anymore, and he dropped his gaze to the sink, where he turned on the tap to wash his hands and face.

 

~

 

A couple minutes later, Kyungsoo called for lunch.

Kai heard him and slowly creeped out of the back of the house to enter the main room again. Kyungsoo was standing in the middle of the room by the dining room table and had two plates of food in his hands.

“Come eat with me before I go to work,” Kyungsoo requested as he set the plates down directly across from each other, Kai came forward. As he got nearer to the human, his anxiety rose, but he smelled the food and his hunger outweighed the cost of being close to Do Kyungsoo. He tentatively reached for the plate that was offered to him.

The two sat at the glass dining table, together. Kyungsoo’s cooking smelled delicious, he was about to start eating with his hands, but after realizing that Kyungsoo was using his utensils, and noticing that there was a fork on the plate for him, he picked up the fork.

They ate wordlessly. Kai was quick to shovel the food down his throat.

“What happened to your neck?” Kyungsoo spoke after a while. Kai looked up and dropped his spoon with a clatter, both hands rising to protect his neck. His gazed flicked down to Kyungsoo’s plate, and he realized that while he was almost done with his dish, Kyungsoo had barely touched his.

“I…scratched myself,” Kai admitted, his ears going back, “I’m sorry,” he murmured. Kyungsoo’s shoulders fell.

“It’s okay, I think I understand,” Kyungsoo spoke, his voice barely above a whisper, and Kai’s eyes flicked up to meet his gaze, “Does it hurt?” the human asked. Kai shook his head, but didn’t answer otherwise.

They didn’t speak much after that. Kai finished eating first; he didn’t know if he was allowed to get up from the table, so he sat and watched Kyungsoo finish his meal. After the human finished his plate, he stood up from the table, the chair scraping across the wooden floor, making Kai jump. Kyungsoo took both plates and put all the dishes in the sink, announcing that he was going back to work, and that he would be back in a few hours.

“You-you’re leaving me here? Alone?” Kai asked, and Kyungsoo nodded, “How do you know I won’t run away?”

Kyungsoo regarded him for a moment, they were standing across the room from each other, and Kai watched the human’s body language change.

“I don’t,” Kyungsoo admitted, “You could leave anytime you wanted, and I won’t be here to stop you,” the human said with a shrug, “I hope you don’t leave though. I’ll be very sad if you’re gone when I get home in a few hours,” he said, and then just like that, he was gone.

The front door closed and locked, and Kai was alone.

Kai was rooted to the spot and he looked around the apartment again; the white walls and clean smells. His ears strained to listen for footfalls or yelling, but all he heard was the faint hum of the refrigerator, and a clock ticking on the wall between the living room and the dining room.

Kai was completely alone.

The hybrid ran on swift, silent feet to the front door, and stepped onto his toes, tail up, to peer through the peep hole. The hallway was empty; Kai pulled away and looked down at the lock on the door. He quickly turned the bolt and heard the tumbler click out of place. The fur on Kai’s tail stood on end. He shuttered the lock twice more, before locking it and turning away from the door.

Kai went into the kitchen. It was very clean, and there were black granite countertops and shiny silver appliances. He stood in front of the large refrigerator and opened it with awe.

There were bottles and jugs of juices and milks. Containers with red lids containing leftovers of home cooked foods. The freezer had ice cream and frozen meals in it too.

He was allowed to eat…anything?

The hybrid stared in awe as he reached inside and tentatively took a container of kimchi. He opened it and smelled it, and a full body shiver ran through him. His temptation overtook him and kai reached in with his fingers, before shoving the food into his mouth. He ate a few bites of kimchi before putting the jar aside.

He sampled everything in the tupperware. The meats, vegetables, cold noodles, and rice. His hands were dirty from his feasting.

Kai had had restricted meals for years, and now, standing in front of a fully stocked kitchen and being told he was allowed to eat when he pleased, Kai went a little overboard. He had already had lunch, prepared by Kyungsoo not ten minutes ago, but Kai's need for more was real. The result of his binge produced quite a mess, and the hybrid tried to put it back as best he could. He put the lids back on the plastic containers and tossed the tupperware he had cleaned out completely into the kitchen sink.

His stomach felt pleasantly full, perhaps a bit too full, but Kai reached into the fridge once more and chose a bottle of pink-colored juice from the middle rack. He finally shut the fridge and took a sip, looking around the vast apartment again.

Slower this time, because of all the food in him, he opened and closed every drawer and cabinet in the kitchen. He found the pantry where there were tons of snack foods. Foods that Kai had watched his last master eat with zeal, but he wasn’t allowed to have taste. Many occasions he was to sit there, hungry, and watch his master stuff his face with chips.

Kai sipped his drink as he poked his head in the hall closet to find the vacuum and broom and smell the jackets. He wandered back into the back rooms again, and peeked his head into the third room.

From all the smells in the house, the only real thing Kai could pick out was Do Kyungsoo. No other person lived in this place but him, and Kai could tell which rooms he occupied the most.

The back rooms did not smell much like Kyungsoo, and Kai guessed the human didn’t spend too much time back here in the guest room, bathroom, or office.

The office room had two walls devoted only to shelving and drawers, and the back wall was windowed like the dining area. The only pieces of furniture were the large dark wooden desk with a chair and computer, and a bulletin board on the wall with the door. Kai’s ears were angled towards the rest of the house as he snuck inside and looked at the cork board. There were a handful of pictures of Kyungsoo with the other humans in his life and a calendar on it that claimed it was late March.

Kai took a closer look at the pictures and recognized some of the humans in them, including a few men who worked with Kyungsoo at the shelter. There were pictures of hybrids up there too. All of their faces were smiling.

He stepped back out of that room, and entered the bathroom again for a quick moment, before going into his own room again.

There was one door he hadn’t gone through yet…

Kai peered out of his bedroom door and could see straight across the dining and living room to the last door, it was even invitingly open a crack. Kai walked softly across the house to the door and peeked his head inside, his ears alert for sounds.

The overwhelming smell Do Kyungsoo invaded his senses. The smell of soap, and shampoo, and cologne, and deodorant, and sweat, and clean clothes and _used_ clothes rooted Kai in the doorway for a moment, sorting through every scent.

Inside the large room, there was a window, a set of shelves and drawers that were part of the architecture, and one large bed with a black comforter on it.

Kai knew by the smells that this was the master bedroom, and he knew what it meant.

His curiosity got the better of him and he crept inside as quietly as he could, nose still taking it all in. He wandered into the bathroom, and his eyes were drawn to the large bathtub first. He couldn’t remember the last time he taken a bath…but this room was off limits to Kai.

At least, after today it would be off limits.

Kai poked around some more, the smell of Kyungsoo’s room made him feel drunk, and Kai wasn’t sure if he was comfortable here. He spotted his full reflection in the closet door mirrors, and Kai flicked his tail. He crossed to the closet in the back of the bathroom, and opened it. The concentrated musk of Do Kyungsoo poured out, and Kai’s fur stood on end.

He bent forward to press his face inside, and inhaled deeply. This time, a full body shiver ran through Kai. He shut that side of the closet door, and opened the other. He looked up and saw a rack of colorful dress ties, and then looked down and saw a rack of leather belts.

Kai slammed the door shut and ran out of the room.


	3. Taking Small Steps

 

For the first month, Kai said very little, but watched with great diligence.

Kyungsoo had never been around a hybrid that didn’t want to be interacted with. Every hybrid he had been personal with was usually pretty chatty and touchy, some more so than others, but Kai liked to say in his room, or sit by the dining room windows and look out at the world passing them by.

The only times Kai would come within ten feet of Kyungsoo was when the human was serving him food.

But it worked in Kyungsoo’s favor. For a month straight, Kyungsoo got into the routine of getting up early to shower and make coffee and breakfast, just so he could maybe have a conversation with the hybrid.

He was buying more groceries, and cooking more meals to support Kai’s insatiable appetite, and keeping leftovers in the fridge at all times.

Kyungsoo never had much as far so breakfast goes, a habitual morning cup of coffee always got him through til lunch time, but Kai never turned down food. No matter what Kyungsoo made to eat, Kai always ate a lot, and it made Kyungsoo so happy to see the cat eat. The skinny boy was quickly gaining weight, and taking lots of time to sleep too. After a few weeks, the bags under his eyes faded, and his cheeks started to look fuller.

Kyungsoo was looking through his fridge, mulling over what to make for breakfast this morning. His eyes had glazed over the carton of eggs again, but they’d had eggs two days in a row already.

“Kai?” Kyungsoo called absently from the fridge. He waited patiently for Kai to come, still looking inside the refrigerator.

“Yes?” came the quiet voice from behind him, and Kyungsoo turned to see Kai standing in the dining room wearing a large second hand pajama set that was Kyungsoo’s from years ago. His long blond hair was mussed from sleep, the long white fur flicking out from the inside of his kitty ears looked adorable, and his white tail was hanging down behind him.

Morning time was when Kyungsoo thought Kai looked his most endearing. When he was yawning and sleepy eyed, standing partially clad in the morning light.

“I never asked you: Do you know if you have any food sensitivities?” Kyungsoo mused, “I know cats can’t have alcohol, cows’ milk, grapes, or chocolate…” the human pondered.

“I can have chocolate,” Kai answered with a yawn, and Kyungsoo looked back up at him, “I can also drink alcohol… it won’t kill me like it would with other cats…” the hybrid trailed off, “My brother can drink _milk_ , but it’s always given me a stomach ache.”

Kyungsoo perked up, his ears catching on what Kai had said, and quickly followed up before he lost his chance.

“You have a brother?” Kyungsoo asked, and Kai looked up from his feet, and locked eyes with Kyungsoo.

“I used to…” Kai answered slowly, “A-and grandfather too…but then I was taken from my home when I was little, and put into a van,” Kai said and swallowed, “I was just a kid.”

“…Do you remember how old you were?” Kyungsoo whispered, he had stopped looking for things to cook for the time being. This was the most Kyungsoo had been able to learn from Kai so far.

“I can’t really remember, I may have been six or seven…?” he asked, “I was barely kid, a _kitten_ … I was alone for so long… I-I don’t even know how old I am anymore,” Kai broke their gaze and looked down at the floor before taking a step back. Kyungsoo didn’t call him back when Kai turned on his toes to scampered back to his room.

Kyungsoo ended up using the eggs anyway, running out of inspiration for food.

“Breakfast is ready!” Kyungsoo called after he was finished. He took a quarter of the omelet, leaving the majority of it for the cat who would eat what he wanted now, and then probably have the rest later today.

Kai came back into the room, his hair and ears had been tamed, but he was still in his pajamas. The two of them sat at the breakfast table to eat together, at Kyungsoo’s request.

“Thank you,” Kai murmured politely when he took the plate from Kyungsoo.

Kai was always very polite, Kyungsoo had noticed. The hybrid was always quick to say a thank you or an apology.

Kyungsoo smiled sincerely at Kai, before saying ‘you’re welcome’. The human finished eating first and took an extra minute to watch Kai finish his, a happy smile on his lips. When Kai finished, he had a smidge of food on his cheek. Kyungsoo chucked a little and Kai’s eyes snapped to his face at the sound.

The human took his napkin and reached forward slowly. Kai froze. When Kyungsoo’s napkin touched Kai’s face just slightly, Kai smacked Kyungsoo’s hand away from him sharply.

It was very sudden, and it made Kyungsoo startle and drop the napkin. Kai leapt from the table, his face terrified, and his ears falling backward.

“I-I’m sorry,” Kai whimpered, his gold eyes shining with fear, “I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to,” his face dissolved. Kyungsoo immediately got up from the table, and when he did Kai crumpled to the ground, his hands over his head, tail between his legs, his terror overtaking him, and apologies streaming out of him.

“I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to hit you!” he cried into the floor.

Kai expected a punishment for his behavior, but he wasn’t going to get it. Kyungsoo came around to crouch next to the hybrid; this wasn’t the first panic attack Kai had had while being here at Kyungsoo’s house, and Kyungsoo was getting pretty good at handling it.

“Shhhh…” Kyungsoo cooed softly as he got on the floor next to Kai, “It’s alright Kai. I know you didn’t mean to. You didn’t hurt me, and I’m not gonna hurt you,” Kyungsoo mumbled and he slowly put his hand on the back of Kai’s head.

The hybrid tensed, his hands gripping his neck, but Kyungsoo just continued to pet the back of his head slowly.

“You’re okay. We’re okay. I know you didn’t mean to hit me,” Kyungsoo spoke sincerely, “I’m never going to strike you Kai, no matter what you do,” Kyungsoo affirmed. He’s said it before. He only wanted to help Kai, but years of conditioning have made the poor cat expect a hard hand at every touch. Every time Kyungsoo moved to touch Kai, the poor creature jumped.

It’s been a month, and Kyungsoo has barely made a crack through Kai’s walls, and every time something like this happens, it makes Kyungsoo wonder if there was any hope of him saving this creature.

“I just want to help you Kai,” Kyungsoo murmured to the pitiful creature on the floor, “I want you to trust me,” he whispered.

Kai was shaking in a ball on the floor as Kyungsoo softly petted his ears. After a minute, Kai stopped crying, but stayed in his curled, hidden position on the floor.

“I know you’ve been through a lot… when you’re ready to tell me your story, I’m ready to listen,” Kyungsoo said, before he got up from the floor, and left Kai alone. Kai peeked his head out from under his hands as the human got up and walked away from him. When Kyungsoo entered his room to get dressed for work, Kai got up and ran to his bedroom.

Kai sniffed as he crawled deep under the blue and white sheets, and cried. His emotions were overflowing and his released anxiety made his whole body tremble.

He knows he wants to trust Kyungsoo, he just doesn’t know how.

 

~

 

A few days later, Kyungsoo came home from work later than usual. He was tired, he had worked the last six days straight, and today had been bath day at the shelter, so every hybrid had to take a shower. Some hybrids loved water, others it was a struggle just to get them to leave their kennels. Kyungsoo was talking on his cellphone as he walked into his apartment that night, slipping off his shoes.

“—The keys are there in the top drawer of my desk Joon, I swear to you, I don’t have them. Oh, you found them? Good! I’m hanging up now. Don’t call me tomorrow. I won’t pick up the phone,” Kyungsoo said flatly, and was surprised when Kai came up to him, even if it was just to smell him.

“—I dunno, Hyung. I’m going to sleep in late and have a cup of coffee for breakfast, that’s all I’ve got so far,” Joonmyun made a joke about calling in sick tomorrow, and Kyungsoo laughed darkly, “ _Yah_ , don’t. I _swear_. I’m not picking up my phone tomorrow. Good night,” Kyungsoo said as he ended the call and started unloading the contents of his pockets into the bowl on the edge of the counter.

“Well, hello,” Kyungsoo laughed as Kai continued to sniff Kyungsoo’s jacket after the human took it off. The inquisitive cat didn’t greet him back.

“You smell weird today…” Kai commented.

“Today was bath day at the shelter, everyone got bathed, I probably smell like dogs, and cats, and soap,” Kyungsoo said, “I need a shower of my own for sure,” he added, “How was your day? More naps?”

Kai nodded and smiled a little.

“It was warm today, and I fell asleep on the balcony,” the cat said, and Kyungsoo noted that Kai did look a little sun kissed on the arms and face.

“The color looks very nice on you,” Kyungsoo said, “I’m glad you had a good day,” he spoke and smiled, before the human side-stepped the hybrid on his way to his bedroom, being careful not to touch Kai as he brushed past.

Kyungsoo had been really trying to limit his physical contact with Kai; trying to keep his distance and respect Kai’s space. The less he tried to touch the cat, the more comfortable Kai became with him.

Kyungsoo showered alone, and when he got out he decided he was too tired to make dinner, and he decided to order delivery that night. He dressed himself in sweats and a tee-shirt, and sat at one end of the big white couch, facing the television. Preparing himself for an evening of catching up on a show.

He used the remote to flick on the television and started to browse through his recorded files to see what was new he could watch. After a while, the outside buzzer rang, and Kyungsoo got up off the couch to let the delivery guy into the apartment building. Kyungsoo paid for the food and returned to the living room with all of it, unloading it all onto the coffee table.

Kai crept over quietly when he smelled the food in the house.

“I thought you said no food in the living room?” he asked.

“You can only break that rule when I’m there to break it first,” Kyungsoo said and he sighed heavily as he sat back on the couch with a takeout box of fried rice in his hand, “Come sit with me. I bought enough for both of us,” Kyungsoo offered.

Kai crawled over the back of the white couch, and settled onto the opposite end with his legs drawn up. He tentatively reached for a takeout box full of noodles. They ate together, but they didn’t speak. Kyungsoo put on a funny comedy show for a minute, before switching it to some American movie with subtitles. After a long while, Kai put his food down on the coffee table.

“Kyungsoo?” he asked, his voice dropping Kyungsoo’s name like a meow, and Kyungsoo turned to the hybrid. Kai looked beautiful in the low light, his face and hair were washed out, but his hazel eyes were still bright. He looked so much healthier than before.

“Hmm?” Kyungsoo asked in return.

“Can I try something?” the hybrid asked quietly, his ears falling back sheepishly, “If I don’t like it, I can still leave, right?”

Kyungsoo didn’t know what Kai meant, or what he wanted, but the two looked each other in the eyes for a moment, before Kyungsoo swallowed and nodded.

Kai swallowed too, and his ears flicked backward completely, but Kyungsoo was surprised when Kai crept closer. Kyungsoo sat back, his hands up, and Kai slowly came in and laid his head on Kyungsoo’s lap, his head turned away, and his eyes on the television.

Kyungsoo’s heart thumped in his chest as Kai slowly relaxed. After a long moment Kyungsoo relaxed too and lowered his hands, one on Kai’s head, the other on his shoulder. Kai flinched at his touch, but only a little.

The cat’s skin was softer than Kyungsoo imagined, and Kyungsoo softly rubbed and massaged the boy’s shoulder. Kai’s eyes stayed on the television. Kyungsoo wasn’t even sure if Kai was breathing or if he was holding his breath.

Kyungsoo ran his fingers softly into the mess of blonde hair, still amazed at how natural it looked, and touched the back of Kai’s white kitty ear. Kyungsoo started to rub behind the one ear, and Kai leaned ever so slightly into his touch.

Kyungsoo let out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding and warmth spread through him.

All Kai needed was time, and trust.

“Just…please don’t touch my neck?” Kai asked quietly, and Kyungsoo nodded.

“I won’t,” he promised and scratched behind Kai’s ear softly. Kai’s eyes slipped closed as Kyungsoo massaged his ears. Kyungsoo forgot about the TV, and studied the hybrid’s beautiful face without shame, and felt the softness of those rare white ears. He looked down at Kai’s neck, and saw that the line where the last man’s collar was had darkened a little, and was starting to match Kai’s skin tone again.

Kyungsoo watched Kai swallow, and he scrunched his eyes up, his mouth grimacing. Kyungsoo noticed and pulled his hands away. Kai opened his eyes and turned his head to look up at Kyungsoo. His hazel orbs were big, his pupils round and relaxed, but his face showed some pain. Kyungsoo leaned back against the couch, slowly reeling himself back in from the hybrid.

“Kai…” Kyungsoo whispered, and Kai’s ears flicked in response, “Are you alright?” Kyungsoo asked, “If this is uncomfortable for you, I don’t want you to force yourself...”

“It’s not uncomfortable…” Kai started and sat up. Kyungsoo didn’t want him to go. He wanted Kai’s weight on him again. He wanted that closeness. Kai continued, “…I’m afraid,” he whispered.

“Of me?” Kyungsoo asked, not knowing if he could bear the answer, but he asked anyway, “I don’t want you to be afraid of me, Kai.”

Kai shook his head, his ears drooping and his eyes falling from Kyungsoo’s face.

“I’m afraid…to purr,” he admitted, and Kyungsoo ticked his head to the side in question. Kai looked down at his hands, and clenched his fists, “he used to play this game with me… he would start off soft and nice, and he would rub my ears just right, and the second I started to purr, he would hit me. And he would laugh, and then he’d do it all over again,” Kai murmured, “I wasn’t allowed to fight back. It was a test…to see how long I could stand, and every time I purred he would hit me…so…now I’m afraid to,” he answered, his eyes not meeting Kyungsoo’s.

Kyungsoo’s heart sank, and he slowly reached his hand across the couch to cover one of Kai’s.

“That wasn’t a game,” Kyungsoo whispered, “That was cruelty,” he swallowed, “that man was cruel, and that wasn’t a game, it was abuse,” Kyungsoo explained, “I wonder how many hardships you had to endure…”

Kai swallowed and look up at Kyungsoo’s face again.

“One day, I’ll be ready to tell you about it,” Kai whispered, “…but not tonight,” he answered, and slowly came back to lay on Kyungsoo’s lap. Kyungsoo’s hands returned to Kai’s ears and shoulder, slowly caressing the hybrid.

After a long while, Kyungsoo felt the rumble from Kai’s throat on his thigh, and he shut his eyes and listened. Kai’s purr was deep, and slow. It sounded natural and wonderful to his human ears, and Kyungsoo smiled.

“Oh, _sweet cat_ ,” Kyungsoo whispered, as he stroked Kai’s head, “I could never hurt something like you,” he murmured, “I wish I could take all your pain away,” he admitted from the heart.

Kyungsoo knew he couldn’t take away Kai’s pain in a night. The scars of physical abuse would heal, but there were other scars that couldn’t be erased with kind words, and warm food. He could speak as softly as he could, and he could feed the cat as much as he would eat, and he could be as gentle as a butterfly, but he knew that the emotional damage would take years to overcome.

Kyungsoo had seen many cats and dogs that had been given a second chance after an unfit owner, but Kai was the worst that he had ever seen, and he still had no idea what had really happened to the cat. He had no idea how to treat him, or what was okay, or what was too much.

After a few minutes, Kai’s purrs went quiet, and Kyungsoo thought Kai had fallen asleep. He didn’t want to move, he was savoring this tender moment as long as he possibly could and was trying to zone back into the television show. Kai cleared his throat after a while and rose up from Kyungsoo’s lap.

“Thank you… for everything…” the cat murmured, before he got up, “Someday… I’ll be ready to tell you about it,” Kai whispered before he padded out of the living room, leaving Kyungsoo feeling cold and alone on the couch.

The ghost of Kai’s hair still lingered on his fingertips.

 

~

 

“I have a good idea,” Kyungsoo said a week later, “I want to invite my friends from over for dinner tonight,” he stated to Kai that morning before Kyungsoo left for work.

Kai blinked at Kyungsoo and gaped a little, like he had no idea how to respond. His ears went back.

“ _Why_?” they hybrid asked.

“Because…I can’t be the only person you socialize with,” Kyungsoo stated as he placed a breakfast burrito in front of Kai, “I think it would do you good to have a hybrid friend. My friend Chanyeol has a very sweet kitty around your age named Baekhyun, and I think you two could become good friends,”

Kyungsoo had been thinking about this for a while now. Baekhyun could come on strong, but Kyungsoo believed that Baek could help Kai in ways that Kyungsoo couldn’t. Hybrid to hybrid.

Kai didn’t answer him. He clearly looked uneasy at the idea, but Kai looked uneasy whenever Kyungsoo suggested anything that was out of Kai’s daily routine.

When Kyungsoo left the house that morning, he called his friend Chanyeol, dialing the number by heart. He held the phone to his ear and only had to wait a few moments before his friend picked up.

 

~

 

Kyungsoo returned home just before six with a bunch of bags of groceries for tonight’s meal with his so-called friends, and a new outfit he had bought just for Kai.

Kai’s face looked sour, even as Kyungsoo showed him his new garments— dark wash skinny jeans and a red plaid button up. Kyungsoo had gone to a specialty hybrid clothing store, where the pants had a hole in the seat of the pants for a tail, and the hats had slots for ears.

Kyungsoo changed from his work pants into a pair of black slacks, and a white, long sleeved button up, rolling his sleeves up to his elbows. He had his shirt tucked in and a thin black belt around his hips, keeping his outfit in place. He walked back into the kitchen and put on the red apron he owned.

“What’s wrong, Kai?” Kyungsoo inquired as he started to chop vegetables and Kai’s ears flattened backwards.

“I don’t feel well,” Kai answered, “I want to skip out on dinner.”

“You’re just feeling a little shy and anxious about meeting new people, but Baekhyun is nice, and I think you too will play well together,” Kyungsoo said with a soft voice, “You need a friend other than me,” he reminded, and Kai’s cheeks actually reddened a little bit, due to anger or embarrassment, Kyungsoo couldn’t tell.

Kai had changed into the new clothes for the occasion, and they looked good on him. The flannel was casual, and the jeans were new and fitting.

Almost as if on cue, there was a knock on the front door. Kai jumped and his eyes snapped to the front hallway. Kyungsoo set down his knife and wiped his hands on a dish towel before wandering around the corner to get the door. With every footstep Kyungsoo took, Kai’s anxiety rose.

Kai visibly shrank when the front door opened, and Kyungsoo greeted his guests.

“Kyungsooooo!!” yowled a voice from down the hall, “I haven’t been over in so long!”

Kai wanted to run and hide, but he didn’t.

After a moment, Kyungsoo and two others came around the corner again. Kai’s eyes immediately caught sight of the other cat, and he stopped breathing; he didn’t know what to expect.

The Havana brown had a bright red collar on his neck, and cutoff jeans, and a white tee-shirt. In his arms was a bouquet of yellow roses and in an instant the other cat was upon him. Kai backed up, his tail puffing, and the hybrid pressed the flowers into Kai’s hands.

“Hi, I’m Baekhyun, these are for you!” the dark cat chirped, his dark eyes glittering. Kai felt like he was too close and he tried to take another step back but the Havana kept pressing forward, “Wow, your ears are _soooo_ _pretty_ ,” Baekhyun cooed, “The pink on the inside is very cute!” the brown cat said and Kai’s ears immediately flattened back against his head with embarrassment. Baekhyun’s dark ears were slightly rounded at the top, while Kai’s were tall and pointed. The other stranger, the human, came forward and put one large hand on Baekhyun’s shoulder.

“Don’t forget to bow,” he said, his voice was thick and deep and it made Kai’s spine straighten instinctively. Both of the newcomers bowed to Kai.

The human was tall, his hair was freshly dyed a dark red, his teeth were very white, and his smile was wide. Kai didn’t expect such a nice face to match such a dangerous sounding voice, but Kai knew that pretty faces didn’t always mean pretty people, and he took another little step back.

“It’s so nice to meet you!” Baekhyun said, “I’m jealous you get to live with Kyungsoo, his cooking is the best!” Baekhyun chirped. He was so happy, and Kai didn’t know how to respond.

“Kai, aren’t you going to say ‘hello’?” Kyungsoo coaxed, and Kai’s eyes flickered to Kyungsoo’s and back to the other cat and his human again. Kai took another big step back and bowed slightly.

“H-hello,” he murmured, “M-my name is Kai,” he stuttered.

“My name is Park Chanyeol, this is my cat Baekhyun,” the tall human introduced formally, “I’ve been friends with Kyungsoo since college,” the human said, the deepness of his voice made Kai’s tail bristle, but Chanyeol didn’t even make an attempt to touch Kai as he turned to join Kyungsoo in the kitchen. Baekhyun lingered behind and held eye contact with Kai for a moment, his tail thrashing with excitement, before leaping off to go into the kitchen with the humans.

It took Kai less than a minute to decide that he did not like the Havana brown.

Baekhyun was loud and openly affectionate, he was rubbing up on his human every couple minutes, before breaking away to hug Kyungsoo, and purr up all over him.

Kai bristled and stayed silent all through the cooking process as he listened to Chanyeol and Kyungsoo chat, and Baekhyun kept telling Kyungsoo how much he missed coming over to play. When the food was done being prepared, and all that was left to do was wait for it to finish cooking, Kyungsoo put the yellow roses in a vase, and set them on the dining room table.

When Baekhyun bounced over to Kai again, it wasn’t received well.

Kai let out a low growl as the other cat came within five feet of him, and he hissed once. Baekhyun didn’t even look slightly off put by the aggressive display, his ears didn’t even twitch. Kyungsoo turned around from the stove but Baekhyun caught him and let out a quick ‘ _Shh_!’ before turning back to the hybrid.

“It’s okay,” Baekhyun said with a soft meow, and held out his arm to Kai, looking him level in the eyes, “I know, I’m a lot of cat. Come smell me. I’m really nice, I swear,” he offered.

Kai stared into Baekhyun’s dark eyes for a few moments before leaning in to smell the tips of Baekhyun’s fingers. Kai’s tail puffed up defensively, and his pupils were crescents, but he didn’t lash out or growl at Baekhyun when the other cat moved closer.

Both humans fell into silence as Baekhyun and Kai got familiar in the way that only cats can. By smell, slowly, little by little.

First hands, then arms, then chests, then faces, Baekhyun stepped in close on his toes to smell Kai’s hair, when he did, Kai bent and smelled Baekhyun’s neck, throat, collar, and shoulder. They broke away and turned to bend around each other. Kai smelled the tip of Baekhyun’s thin brown tail, which was held high enough for Kai to get a whiff of, but when Baekhyun tried to smell Kai’s, the white cat twitched, and lowered it down between his legs.

Kai came back in to smell Baekhyun’s shirtfront again. When he pulled away this time, his pupils were big and glassy. Kai’s ears relaxed and shook his head to clear it.

“You smell _really_ good,” Kai mumbled, his ears swiveling around and his white tail low and twitching. Baekhyun laughed and plucked at his tee-shirt.

“I’m wearing catnip spray. It helps other cats feel more relaxed, but…” Baekhyun mused and he stepped forward to smell Kai again, “You smell _really_ familiar,” he said, “Have we met before?”

“N-No, I don’t think so…” Kai said, and backed away from Baekhyun, shaking his head again.

“Hmm, I can’t place it either…” Baekhyun said, “You smell like someone I’ve smelled before.”

Just then, Kyungsoo called that dinner was ready, and both the cat’s ears perked up. Baekhyun was the first to fly into the kitchen, chanting ‘ _Kyung~soo’s cook~ing! Kyung~soo’s cook~ing!_ ’

The meal was lavish, with many side dishes. Both Baekhyun and Chanyeol had been anticipating this meal all day. Kai, as usual, ate very quickly. Kyungsoo paid it no mind; Chanyeol looked back and forth between the two before following Kyungsoo’s lead and not paying attention to it. Kyungsoo was thankful for Baekhyun’s presence at the dinner table when the cat whined again, breaking the silence, saying that Kai was so lucky to be living with Kyungsoo, and got to eat his cooking every day.

Kai sat in his seat across from Kyungsoo, right next to the other cat, as the hybrid Baekhyun chattered on and on. Kai had wolfed down his food minutes ago, while the others were taking their time.

Kai didn’t speak during dinner. When asked a question, he didn’t really respond with much more than a nod or shake of his head. He listened intently to the conversation going on between Kyungsoo, the other human, and the dark cat, gathering all the information he could from watching.

Chanyeol made music, he and Baekhyun had been very busy making new music very recently, and Baekhyun went with Chanyeol when the human went to work. Baekhyun talked about all the fun people he met just recently while working with Chanyeol, and how they had just returned home from a long trip around Korea, where they had been traveling around in a bus with the other people Chanyeol makes music with.

“I missed Kyungsoo-Hyung so much!” Baekhyun said and turned to Kai fully, “You’re so lucky! Kyungsoo is a great human. How long have you been staying here?” he asked, his brown eyes so wide and friendly. Kai blinked, opened his mouth, and stammered.

“I-I d-don’t know.”

“A little over a month,” Kyungsoo answered for him. Baekhyun glanced over at Kyungsoo, his eyebrows taking on a new height.

“ _Really_?” Baekhyun asked, and licked his lips, “Can I come over to play tomorrow while you’re at work?” he asked quickly. Kai sucked in a breath through his nose, and his tail bristled. Kyungsoo glanced over at Chanyeol, who shrugged and laughed.

“I don’t mind,” Chanyeol said with a crinkle-eyed smile.

“Neither do I,” Kyungsoo stated. Baekhyun snapped his head back to look Kai in the eyes again, and Kai was not prepared for the sheer excitement in Baekhyun’s eyes. Kai’s ears flattened backwards slowly.

 “ _Why_?” Kai asked under his breath rudely. Kyungsoo wanted to correct Kai, but Baekhyun had his full attention.

“Why _not_?!” Baekhyun countered, his voice booming, “I have toys, and books, and a Playstation I can bring down! _Ooor_ you can come up to my place and we can play in my room!! Or we can take a walk to the park or a cafe—!”

“Up?” Kai asked, following Baekhyun’s quick train of thought all the way up until then.

“Yeah! Didn’t Kyungsoo tell you? Chanyeol and I live on the top floor of this building!” Baekhyun announced, “We’re neighbors!” he cried happily.

“Baekhyun can come over tomorrow, but no walks,” Kyungsoo cut in, and both cats looked at him, “I want you both to stay inside the apartment if you play together.”

“Deal!” Baekhyun chirped, and looked back to Kai, his eyes wide, “Please, please, please, _please_?”

Kai looked to Kyungsoo, then back to Baekhyun, his eyes wide and uncertain. Baekhyun grinned at Kai, showing lots of teeth, but not a single ounce of aggression, only unfiltered excitement. The smell of Baekhyun’s catnip was strong when the brown hybrid leaned close. After an awkward moment, Kai said:

“…Sure?” with much uncertainly.

Baekhyun’s grin widened even more.


	4. Enter Baekhyun

 

Baekhyun had caught Kai in a friendship trap the moment he walked through Kyungsoo’s front door that night, and Kai hadn’t even realized it.

The next morning, Baekhyun arrived in time for breakfast, and ran into Kyungsoo’s apartment with a stack of coloring books and an armful of markers, crayons, and colored pencils.

For the next two weeks, Baekhyun rode the elevator down to Kai and Kyungsoo’s apartment every day, without fail, even if it was just for a while. After a month of living with Kyungsoo, Kai had put on some weight and was beginning to develop a lot more energy.

By the fourth day, Kyungsoo came home to find them play fighting. Kai had Baekhyun pinned to the couch, sitting on the Havana’s hips, and was tickling his ribs. Baekhyun was squealing, and squirming. They would chase each other down the hall, laughing loudly.

Some days, Baekhyun would ask Kyungsoo to walk him home after they had played enough for the day.

Baekhyun used the time it took to walk down the hall and ride up the elevator, to update Kyungsoo about Kai, and how things are going since Baekhyun started coming over.

Baekhyun quells a lot of Kyungsoo’s fears for Kai.

One of the things Baekhyun reassures Kyungsoo of is Kai’s feelings towards the human. Kai doesn’t hate Kyungsoo. He actually likes Kyungsoo a lot, which was something the human worried about daily.  Baekhyun said that Kai had been hurt by every human he had encountered in the past, and that he doesn’t know how to trust humans anymore.

He said that Kai’s eyes always flick back and forth between his face and his collar when they’re talking, and that Kai don’t like having his tail touched.

Baekhyun also tells Kyungsoo whenever Kai has a panic attack. So far, Baekhyun has been able to extinguish the situation before it escalates too much, and on the days that Kai has them, Kyungsoo is so grateful for Baekhyun in Kai’s life. Baekhyun’s attitude made Kai more relaxed at home, and the cat Kyungsoo had taken in was starting to become more and more talkative.

Though some days were better than others, it depended on the day. Some days Baekhyun would leave before Kyungsoo went home, and Kai seemed annoyed and agitated for the rest of the night.

Kyungsoo knows how much personality the other cat had, so he couldn’t blame Kai for needing a break.

The only person who could tolerate Baekhyun forever was Chanyeol, which is what made the two of them such a great match. But Kai became easily burnt out from Baekhyun at the end of the day, who could sometimes tease just a little too far.

Kai’s limits were clearly pushed over one day. Kyungsoo got home from a long day at work. It was the end of the month, Kyungsoo had been at work from open to close, and he walked in and slipped off his shoes with a long sigh, happy to be home.

He walked down the short hall to the entrance of the kitchen and instantly noticed the broken glass on the floor; the glass bowl he put his keys and wallet in had been broken.

He looked up to view the rest of the apartment and found his home _ransacked_. The couch cushions had been torn apart, and one of the black couches had been knocked over completely onto its back. The chairs around the dining table were all askew, a pillow had been ripped, and there was stuffing on the carpet. The sound of scuffling could be heard from the living room.

“ _What_ is going on?” Kyungsoo asked out loud, and two heads jumped up from the other side of the couches. Kai’s ears immediately fell, and the white cat bolted away from the other. There was a hanging moment of tension before the guest room door slammed shut.

Baekhyun’s ears flicked backwards at the sound. He stood up slowly and looked around the silent apartment in shame.

“Umm…” the hybrid started, and Kyungsoo crossed his arms, “things got a little out of hand today…” he said. Kyungsoo took in a deep, controlled breath.

“Do I need to call Chanyeol?” Kyungsoo asked, and Baekhyun’s ears went back all the way, hidden in his ruffled brown hair. He nodded silently, eyes downcast.

Kyungsoo put his shoes back on, and called Chanyeol, who was at work in the studio, after a quick conversation with Kyungsoo, the human handed the phone to the brown cat. Baekhyun looked even more ashamed as he held the phone high up to his feline ear. Their conversation was short, and Baekhyun hung up the phone.

“I have to go home,” Baekhyun said, not meeting Kyungsoo’s eyes, “I’m gonna get scolded for sure.”

“Before you leave, will you tell me what happened today?” Kyungsoo asked but Baekhyun knew it wasn’t a question.

“It was my fault, I was teasing Kai too much, and then we got to playing too rough…” Baekhyun pulled down the collar of his shirt to show Kyungsoo a red mark on his shoulder, “Kai bit me, and I bit him back,” he admitted, “and then…Kai did something _really_ bad…” and then Baekhyun went silent.

“What did Kai do?” Kyungsoo pressed. Baekhyun pulled his face away, and looked down.

“…I don’t want to say it,” Baekhyun whispered, “He knew it was a mistake…” he said and Kyungsoo sighed.

“It’s okay, Baek. You can go home now,” Kyungsoo said, and walked Baekhyun to the door, being mindful of the glass. After seeing the hybrid safely to the elevator, Kyungsoo returned to his apartment. He didn’t spare a glance at the kitchen, and headed straight back to Kai’s room. He stood outside the closed door and knocked.

“Kai?” Kyungsoo called, “Baekhyun went home. I know you’re in there,” there was no response—

“I’m coming in.”

Kyungsoo pushed open the door and his eyes fell to the bed, but Kai wasn’t on it. Kyungsoo entered the room and peeked around the side of the bed to see Kai sitting on the carpeted floor, his knees to his chest, his face buried in his arms, his tail wrapped around his bare feet, and his snowy ears flat backwards on his head.

On Kai’s forearm was a fresh mark from where Baekhyun must have bitten him.

Kyungsoo came to sit on the floor by the cat, and reached forward to pet Kai’s hair and ears. Kai flinched when Kyungsoo’s hand touched him, but he relaxed after a second, and slowly lifted his head. Kyungsoo could see how red his eyes looked, and he knew the hybrid had been crying.

“It’s okay, Kai,” Kyungsoo said barely above a whisper “Baekhyun’s gone home for the day. Why don’t you tell me what happened while I was at work?”

Kai raised his head completely and sniffed, his face looking tired and blotchy.

“Y-you’re g-gonna be mad…” Kai whimpered, and Kyungsoo continued to pet Kai’s hair and ears softly. He noticed that Kai’s shirt and pants were filthy with stains from who knows what.

“I promise I won’t get mad,” Kyungsoo said, his voice soothing, “Baekhyun already said that he pushed your buttons too much today, so whatever happened wasn’t your fault,” Kyungsoo murmured quietly, then removed his hand, only to offer it for Kai to take.

Kai tentatively took Kyungsoo’s hand. The human pulled Kai up from the floor, and the cat silently lead Kyungsoo slowly out of the back bedroom, through the dining room, and back to the kitchen. Kai’s ears were flattened against his head again as he let go of Kyungsoo’s hand and they surveyed the disaster zone that was the kitchen.

The living room was tame in comparison to this. _This_ is where it all started.

There was food and broken dishes everywhere. The countertops, which Kyungsoo kept immaculate, were covered in uneaten food and open tupperware. There were open ramen packets, dry noodles, sauces, rice, and who knows what else on the floor. It looked like every edible thing had been torn apart and laid to waste all over the kitchen. Kyungsoo’s eyes finally settled on the yellow stain on the refrigerator door, and a puddle on the floor beneath it, and Kyungsoo realized exactly what the ‘bad thing’ Kai had done was.

“Is that…?” Kyungsoo asked, “…Did you _mark_ my refrigerator?” he asked with a laugh, and he turned to look at Kai, whose face was beet red, and he shrunk away as Kyungsoo said the word ‘mark’. Kyungsoo couldn’t help but chuckle a little at the absurdity of it, but Kai didn’t find it amusing at all.

“I-I-I’m s-sorry…” Kai murmured, tears filling his eyes, “B-Baekhyun kept poking me, and he kept saying that you loved— _liked!_ — him more than me, and that he was allowed to do whatever he wanted, and he ran into your room, and he went into the fridge, and started to pull out everything he could, and I bit him, and then he bit me, and I pushed him, and he knocked over the bowl…” he said and looked down at the shattered glass around them. Kai took another deep, shuddered breath, “I-I chased him, we fought, and then…I p-peed in the kitchen, and ate most of the food he took out…and…and I’m _sorry_ ,” Kai sobbed, his eyes clenched shut, and his face turned away, “If you’re g-gonna hit me…do it quick,” he whispered, and Kyungsoo turned around to face Kai fully. The hybrids hands were clenched into fists, like he was waiting for a slap he felt he deserved. Kyungsoo’s heart dropped.

Kyungsoo stepped forward and gently wrapped his arms around Kai’s form, both of his hands on Kai’s back. Kai gasped, and stilled, but slowly melted into Kyungsoo’s small form as the man spoke.

“I’m not going to hit you, Kai. You know that,” Kyungsoo murmured in a soft, kind voice, and pressed his cheek into the hybrid’s shoulder, hugging him for the first time, “I could never hit you, no matter what you do,” he whispered.

Kai sniffed and Kyungsoo pulled away after a moment to look up into Kai’s face. He reached up and wiped away the tears forming, and brushed back the hybrid’s hair.

“It’s alright, Kai. Go take a bath or shower. I’m going to start cleaning this mess up,” Kyungsoo ordered softly. There was a moment where Kai looked into Kyungsoo’s eyes with relief and disbelief, before Kyungsoo shooed him away, telling him to be careful of the glass.

Kai slunk back into the back of the apartment, and Kyungsoo walked to the hall closet to get the cleaning supplies. Even though he was tired from work, he couldn’t leave this mess as it was.

After twenty minutes, Kyungsoo had swept up the glass, and thrown out the trash and spoiled leftovers, when he heard the shower turn off. He listened as Kai left the bathroom and went to his own room, the door shutting. Kyungsoo had rinsed all the dishes and put them in the dishwasher, and was starting to wipe down the counter tops when Kai finally reemerged.

Kyungsoo looked up at him and stopped his cleaning.

Kai was shirtless. His pale blonde hair was damp and unkempt, and he was wearing nothing but pajama bottoms, his tail curled meekly around on leg.

But Kyungsoo couldn’t help but gaze at the hybrid. His ribs were no longer as visible, and the bruises that covered his body the first day the cat came to his shelter looked like they never existed at all. The only mark left was the fresh one from Baekhyun, and the light ring of discolored skin around his neck that had begun to fade.

Kai’s ears flattened back when he coughed and spoke.

“I-is there anything I can help you with?” Kai asked in a low, apologetic voice. Kyungsoo blinked and nodded with a smile.

“Yes, you can straighten up the living room and dining room, and wipe down the front of the fridge,” Kyungsoo said, “Or rather, _your_ fridge,” he added with a little chuckle. Kai’s ears flicked but he didn’t react otherwise. While Kai fixed the living and dining room, Kyungsoo wiped down the countertops, and got the mop. Kai wiped down the fridge, and then mopped the tile floor of the kitchen.

In no time at all, Kyungsoo’s apartment was back to its immaculate cleanliness.

Kai was helping Kyungsoo put away the cleaning supplies, when Kyungsoo’s cell phone rang. The human picked it up off the counter to read the caller ID.

“It’s Chanyeol,” Kyungsoo said to Kai, who stayed silent. Kyungsoo answered the call, turning it on speaker, “Hello?” Kyungsoo said, holding the phone out.

“Kyungsoo?” Chanyeol asked, “Is Kai there?”

“Yes, he is. You’re on speaker.”

“Go on, Baekhyun,” said Chanyeol’s deep voice, then Baekhyun’s shriller voice came pouring out of the cell phone.

“Kai?” he asked, “I’m sorry I teased you so much today. I didn’t mean to make you that upset. And Kyungsoo, I’m sorry about making such a big mess in your apartment,” there was a pause.

“… _And_?” Chanyeol’s voice added and Kyungsoo couldn’t help but laugh a little.

“And I’m going to buy you a new couch pillow and bowl for your wallet,” Baekhyun said quieter, and Kyungsoo could almost see his dropped ears and shameful face.

“Kai,” Kyungsoo prompted, and Kai’s ears became alert, “Is there anything you want to apologize to Baekhyun for?” Kai’s pupils flickered, before his ears flattened back again. He swallowed.

“Baekhyun, I’m sorry I bit you,” Kai said aloud, and Baekhyun hummed.

“It’s okay… I’m sorry I bit you back…” Baekhyun murmured. There was another pause before Chanyeol spoke.

“Baekhyun won’t be coming over to play for a while, he’s being grounded,” Chanyeol’s thick voice spoke, “I think the boys both need a break from each other.”

“Agreed,” Kyungsoo said, “We all could use some good rest. The important thing is—“ Kyungsoo reached up to pet Kai’s ears, “—No one got seriously injured, and everyone apologized,” Kyungsoo smiled up at Kai, who’s chin and lower lip quivered.

“Yes, I suppose so,” Chanyeol sighed, “Well, good night you two,” he said. Kyungsoo said good night as well, and then Chanyeol hung up the phone, leaving Kyungsoo and Kai alone again. Kyungsoo looked up into Kai’s face again and saw the small tears threatening to fall.

“Ohh, don’t cry,” Kyungsoo shushed and reached both of his hands up to touch Kai’s cheeks.

“I don’t understand…” Kai hiccupped, “how are you still so nice to me after all of this? I ruined your apartment.”

“No, you didn’t ruin it, a house can be cleaned, see?” Kyungsoo said and looked around the kitchen, which looked just as good as it did when Kyungsoo left for work this morning.

“I-I’m still really sorry,” Kai sniffed.

Kyungsoo stroked Kai’s cheeks with his thumbs. The poor cat had been so scared since Kyungsoo got home, expecting to be beat for his transgression, but Kyungsoo would never do something like that to Kai.

The human softly pulled Kai’s head down to his face, and Kyungsoo pressed a kiss to his forehead, hoping Kai could feel how much Kyungsoo didn’t want to hurt him.

He let go of Kai’s face after a tender moment, and Kai stared down at him with puffy, red cheeks and watery eyes.

“It’s alright, Kai, I forgive you,” Kyungsoo said, and let his arms fall, “Now, I don’t know about you, but I’m tired,” the human said, “I’m going to go to sleep, okay?” Kyungsoo stated more than asked, and he turned to leave the kitchen. Right as he was about to go into his room, he heard Kai’s fast approaching footsteps. Kyungsoo turned just in time to be enveloped in a hug from Kai. Kyungsoo lifted his arms to embrace the hybrid back, and after a moment, Kai pulled away.

“Good night,” the cat whispered, before he spun around and quickly zipped off to his room on the other side of the apartment.

Kyungsoo retreated to his bedroom, his heart thudding in his chest, he wasn’t expecting Kai to come and initiate a hug like that and Kyungsoo’s hope grew.

He left the door open a crack like he did every night, hoping that one night Kai would come crawling into his bed, if only to seek warmth and sleep next to him.

 

~  


Kyungsoo woke up the next morning, and almost instantly noticed that he wasn’t alone in his room. Kai was sitting in the doorway of his bedroom just inside the entrance, his back against the wall.

 “Kai?” Kyungsoo asked groggily and sat up, “What’s wrong?” there was a long silent pause.

“I didn’t sleep well last night, I kept having nightmares…” he murmured, then looked up at Kyungsoo, “I’m ready to talk about it,” is all that he said.

 

~

 

Kyungsoo sat on the floor, across the room from Kai, on his same level. They were both in their pajamas. Kyungsoo was leaning against his bedframe, the black blanket from his bed had been dragged down halfway over him. They both sat in silence for a while. Kai was playing with the tip of his tail, gathering his words. He reclined back against the wall by the door, and stretched his long legs out across the floor. He finally let out a sigh, his shoulders dropping.

“When I was a kitten, I used to live by the ocean, with my grandpa and brother. I told you that I was kidnapped…” Kai started, “but I ran away first. I was angry at my grandfather for something… I don’t even remember,” he shook his head, “I ripped off my collar and ran away like an angry child. I slept at a park that night, and after being away from my home all night, I had cooled off and was ready to go back, but I was so lost… I asked some people for help. I had no collar, but I had a chip. The people said they would help me find my home again, but they lied. I got into their car, and then I woke up, and I was in a cage, with a lot of other scared hybrids in cages all around me… it was the first time I had ever even seen a cage. I was still a kitten then, I hadn’t even gotten my first heat yet.”

Kai took a moment to close his eyes and take a deep breath before continuing.

“I stayed in cages for so long. We were only ever let out to go to the bathroom, once a day. They gave us scraps of food and barely kept us alive. I noticed that older hybrids were being cycled out, and younger hybrids were being brought in. Once I reached my first heat, I was taken out of the cage, and brought to an auction. I was sold to my second master for two hundred million yen.”

“Second master?” Kyungsoo asked, breathless. Kai nodded, and held up his hand to count.

“The first would be my grandfather. My second was the man who bought me for two hundred million, and took my virginity that night… I thought he was a bad master, but he was tame in comparison to my third, my last, master,” Kai swallowed, and let his hand drop, “My second master kept me in his hotel rooms, on a leash tied to the bed. I was barely a teenager, and he was an old man. He traveled a lot and always took me with him, but I was always to be escorted to his rooms away from him. He was some big businessman or something…” Kai trailed off again, “He lost me in a gamble two years later, and I was so happy to be rid of him, but I never imagined how much worse my third master would be…”

Kai’s pupils contracted, and Kyungsoo could see him reliving it all behind his eyes.

“On the first day I arrived, he beat the shit out of me, ripped out my claws, one by one, and he told me my life belonged to him,” Kai shivered, “he then brought me down to the basement, his _game room_ …” Kai’s voice dropped, and so did his ears. When Kai looked back at Kyungsoo, the human’s blood ran cold.

“You couldn’t even imagine how horrible that place was, Kyungsoo…” Kai’s voice wavered, “Every wall in this room had shotguns or hybrid heads mounted on it.”

Kyungsoo’s stomach lurched, Kai’s looked up at the ceiling, his eyes gathering moisture, “Heads _and_ tails. He said he was a collector. There was a stag, a rabbit, a fox, a steer… and a wall devoted to the different kinds of cats… he said that… when he finally got bored of me, he would do the same thing to me… and that _my_ head would go on the wall next to the other breeds of cats, like a _trophy_. He told me I had to behave, and he called me his _favorite_ …” Kai growled the word, “I slept in a cage at the foot of his bed. I served him his meals every day, even when he denied me food, and I was to pleasure him any time he said… I was his…” Kai was shaking with anger, and the next word dropped from his mouth like a hiss, “…His _pussycat_.”

Kyungsoo cringed at the word, and so did Kai, by the way his lips curled upwards at the word.

“I couldn’t disobey any of his commands. He would beat me, or take away my food privileges, or make me stay overnight in a cage in the game room with his dogs, and I could _never_ sleep with all the heads watching me... he made me please him, and his women, and his friends, and afterwards he would hit me… almost _every_ _time_ he finished, he would… _beat_ me…” Kai’s eyes turned to slivers.

“Sometimes he would have other hybrids for a couple of days, and he kept them in the game room. I was forced to go in before him and tie their hands behind their backs, and blindfold them all, before he tortured, beat, and raped them. After he was done with them, he led them out of the house, and then… there were gunshots. After a couple weeks, some of the heads of those hybrids would appear in the game room, and their glassy dead eyes would stare down at me…”

“I tried to escape a couple times—“ he swallowed “— the second time I even made it outside, but there was nothing. Just fields and a barn in the middle of nowhere. I never even got far enough to call for help. His three dogs were trained to hunt hybrids…”

Kyungsoo watched Kai’s golden eyes lock into a far off space as he started to re-visualize what had happened to him.

“I shouldn’t have tried to run. I didn’t think things could get worse, but that changed after I tried to escape…” Kai stopped, his eyebrows furrowed, he took a deep breath, his exhale shuddering.

“That night, after he caught me… he brought me into the barn instead of his house. There were cages upon cages of hybrids, and he tied my hands behind my back and made me watch him as he… shot another hybrid in the head. I had seen him do a lot of things, and he had done a lot of terrible things to me, but the memory of that cat…” Kai’s pupils practically disappeared into slivers, “he begged, and begged…”

Kai took another moment to take a deep breath, and Kyungsoo wanted to say something, but now was Kai’s time to speak.

“He said that if I tried to run one more time, he’d kill me just the same. A-and then he put that collar on me… and he _locked_ it… and it was too _tight_ …” Kai’s ears flew backwards and his hands went to his sensitive neck, “his beatings then got worse. I was given less and less food. There was no pleasing him. He started to leave me in the game room more and more… and I _knew_ in my heart that my time was slowly coming to an end, and that any day I was going to be killed…” Kai trailed off for a moment before he looked up at Kyungsoo, “I wanted him to kill me. I wanted it all to end…”

They sat there, staring at each other. Kai had never seen a more concerned or caring face before. He had never seen Kyungsoo look this sad before.

“And then… I woke up outside in the rain. And there were a lot of humans I didn’t recognize around me, and I was in a room with white walls, and warm food, and clothes, and then you brought me here,” Kai whispered, “And _this_ place… it still feels so unreal to me,” Kai said, shaking his head slowly, “I feel like… at _any_ second, I’m going to wake upon the floor of my cage, and I’ll be back there, and I’ve never left there, and he’s going to come through the door, angry, with a belt in his hand…”

“You’re not there anymore,” Kyungsoo spoke for the first time in minutes. Kai was silent for a moment, and Kyungsoo watched Kai’s face slowly dissolve. He had been able to tell his story from beginning to end bravely, but now he was vulnerable and open.

“The only thing that kept me alive, night after night…” Kai sniffed, “was the thought of seeing my family again…”

Kyungsoo knew this needed to stop then, Kai had said more than enough for today, and he cleared his throat. Kai was snapped out of his reverie, and he locked eyes with Kyungsoo.

“Kai,” Kyungsoo’s voice cracked, “Come here,” he said, and pulled the blanket down more, and opened up his arms.

Kyungsoo could see in his face that the hybrid was going to cry. Kai moved forward onto his hands and knees and he slowly crawled up to Kyungsoo. His ears were back, his tail low, and he was hiding his face under his blonde hair. Kyungsoo welcomed Kai into his arms, and Kai buried his face into the kind human’s lap, curling into Kyungsoo’s side. He put his arms down around Kai’s shoulders and held the boy’s head close, a warm hand in his hair. Kai’s whole form shook as he start to cry. Kyungsoo couldn’t help it anymore, and tears started to gather in his eyes too.

“I’m here now,” Kyungsoo whispered as Kai’s sobbing increased, his hands balling into the black blanket, “No one can hurt you when you’re with me, remember?” Kyungsoo cried as he softly pet this hybrid’s head. Kai clung harder to Kyungsoo, wrapping his arms around Kyungsoo’s middle. Kyungsoo’s heart broke and swelled all at once.

“I’m so _sorry_ , Kai,” Kyungsoo breathed, trying to keep himself together, “I’m so sorry someone put you through all of that.”

They both were reduced to tears on the floor of the bedroom.

 

~

 

Kyungsoo called off work.

Joonmyun was stunned, but didn’t question it. It was the first day Kyungsoo had called in over a year.

After the phone call, Kyungsoo offered to make Kai breakfast, but the hybrid shook his head, and said that he wasn’t hungry. It was the first time Kai had turned down food from Kyungsoo.

Kai, with shy ears, took Kyungsoo’s hand with both of his, and slowly led the human back to the guestroom. Kai crawled onto the bed, and pulled Kyungsoo onto it with him. Kyungsoo’s heart started to pound at the idea of Kai inviting him into his bed, his safe place.

They lay together on top of Kai’s blankets and sheets. The hybrid’s ears were held back the entire time as he pressed in on the human. Kyungsoo welcomed Kai into his arms, and they lay facing each other, Kyungsoo all but cradling the hybrid to him. Kai was so warm, and even though he was taller than Kyungsoo, he seemed so small in this moment.

After weeks of watching Kyungsoo skeptically from a distance, slowly growing closer, and finally opening up his fears and emotions, Kai was ready to be set free. He had never been able to tell someone his story. He hadn’t had a friend in years. He had never been loved, or in love… but right now, the hybrid felt safe in this human’s gentle arms.

 “Can I…” Kai started and pulled away an inch so Kyungsoo could hear him, “Can I sleep here for a while?” Kai murmured, not meeting Kyungsoo’s gaze.

“Of course you can,” Kyungsoo cooed, and pulled the cat’s head back into him, “Sleep for as long as you need.”

“…And you won’t leave?”

“No,” Kyungsoo whispered, and pressed a soft kiss onto the hybrid’s head between the ears, “I won’t leave you.”

Kai pressed up into Kyungsoo more, burying his head up under the human’s chin, and tangling their feet together.

“ _Oh_ , sweet cat,” Kyungsoo whispered, and relaxed completely into the pillows, rubbing Kai’s back softly.

Kyungsoo knew Kai had fallen asleep when the hybrids feline ears relaxed and came forward. Kyungsoo nodded off too for a little while and when he awoke, it was noon, and Kai’s snowy tail was flicking softly against his thigh.

Kyungsoo was on his back, with Kai pressed up into his side, his head on the human’s chest. Their bodies seemed molded together, and Kyungsoo gripped Kai’s waist a little tighter.

Kai felt him stir, and started to speak.

“Kyungsoo?” he murmured, and Kyungsoo hummed in response, not opening his eyes, “I can kind of remember my time at the labs, before my grandfather took my brother and I home,” Kai whispered, “I remember lots of white coats, and older people, and the other cats my age…” he mused, Kyungsoo lifted his hand to lightly touch Kai’s hair and ears, letting the cat know he was listening, Kai nuzzled up into the hand slightly, “Besides my grandfather… you were the first person to ever show me real kindness,” Kai whispered, “…I thought I was going to die in that house. I had no doubt in my mind, or hope for a better place… but now I’m _here_ ,” Kai breathed out, “in the sunlight, in this amazing home, with you…”

Kyungsoo smiled when Kai said that, and his heart leapt. In this position, there was no doubt that Kai noticed it. The hybrid snuggled a little bit closer.

Kai sighed.

“I could stay here forever,” he whispered and Kyungsoo was caught off guard, “I could never step outside this house again and be happy with that.”

Kyungsoo stilled. He was in too deep, and he knew it.

He couldn’t afford Kai. Sure, feeding him, clothing him, caring for him, that was all easy enough, but paying for Kai’s ownership could be a whole different investment. If Kai was a rare breed from a big genetic laboratory, like Kyungsoo suspected, his registration alone could cost Kyungsoo half a year’s pay.

“The plan, _originally_ …” Kyungsoo started as he sat up, to look down into Kai’s face, “was to heal you up, get you registered again, and put you up for adoption so you could find a home with… someone else,” Kyungsoo admitted as he looked down into Kai’s face. Kai lifted his head again, pulling away from Kyungsoo’s touch to look up into the human’s brown eyes. His eyes were wide with confusion, and questions. Kyungsoo’s heart broke as the look of abandon crossed Kai’s gorgeous face.

“But… you said you were going to take care of me now…” he murmured, his voice warbled, “You’re gonna… get rid of me, aren’t you?” Kai whispered, his ears going back, and Kyungsoo couldn’t stand it. He took Kai’s face with one hand, and pressed their foreheads together, his eyes squeezing shut because he couldn’t bear to see the heartbroken look on Kai’s face.

Kyungsoo has always wanted to save the hybrids. Has always been fascinated with them, always wanted to work with them, and learn about them, but Kai was the first one who actually ripped at Kyungsoo’s heartstrings, made Kyungsoo want to hold him close, and made him want to come home to a hybrid— _this_ hybrid— every day. Kyungsoo didn’t want another family to take Kai home.  He had been falling for this hybrid for weeks now, and from the moment Kyungsoo laid eyes on him outside the shelter that rainy March morning, a part of him knew that this one was special.

And Kai _was_ special to Kyungsoo.

“No,” Kyungsoo said firmly, shaking his head, “I don’t want to get rid of you. I want you to stay here with me forever. I want to watch you eat my food, and a want to teach you about the good things in this world and help you live a normal, happy life. I want to buy you nice things, and hold you when you’re crying, and find your original family again,” the words tumbled from Kyungsoo’s mouth like a confession, and he opened his eyes again to look deep into Kai’s hazel ones, “I want to keep you safe from all the bad things, I do, but I don’t know if I _can_ …” he said and pulled the hybrid closer to him, for fear of one day having let him go, “…and if I can’t keep you, I want to help you get back to the family you were ripped from so many years ago.”

Kai’s nails dug into Kyungsoo’s shirt sleeves, and his ears fell backwards.

“I’ve never felt closer to someone than I am to you…” Kai murmured, “You make me feel more and more comfortable in my skin every passing day, and I don’t want to lose you for a family I don’t even know misses me…”

“What are you talking about?” Kyungsoo chided softly, “Of course they missed you.”

“You don’t know that,” Kai called Kyungsoo out, “What if my brother hates me for leaving? It was my fault, I ran away, and then got kidnapped, and they probably never knew, it just seemed like I took off, left them, left my brother alone… What if Jongin’s been angry at me all this time? What if he didn’t miss me at all? What if he hates me?” Kai babbled, spiraling, and Kyungsoo cupped Kai’s face and kissed the top of his head, between his ears.

 “I know he misses you,” Kyungsoo whispered, “I’m sure they both miss you, and I’m sure they’re still looking for you to this day, just waiting for you to turn up.”

Kai pulled even closer, and pushed his head under Kyungsoo’s chin. The human pulled Kai a little closer too, his hands on Kai’s slender waist.

 “…I don’t want to learn how to trust someone else…after I’ve just started to trust you the most,” Kai whispered.

 

~

 

The next day at work, Kyungsoo barricaded himself in his office at the shelter to try and get some answers about Kai and figure out what he could do to find that cat’s true identity and original owner.

Kyungsoo had very little to go by. He didn’t know Kai’s real age, didn’t know which company he was bred from…the only thing he knew was that Kai was a medium-haired white cat, a rarity.

Kyungsoo had all the papers necessary to fill out for Kai’s registration, but filling out all new forms seemed foolish when the information about Kai was out there, _somewhere_ , along with his original microchip and identification number.

He called Yixing, who put some good perspective on the situation.

“Well… I can email some people in Beijing who still work in the labs at the Genetic Modification Center, and see if I can get a DNA test kit for their database,” the Chinese doctor said, “But it shouldn’t be too hard to find a match, because he’s a _boy_ , and he’s _white_.”

“What do you mean?” Kyungsoo asked.

“Well…okay, let’s go over a couple statistics. Seventy-five percent of all hybrids are female, because of the _trend_ , right?” Yixing said, referring to the fetish men have for kitty-girls, “Which leaves about twenty-five percent male, okay? So we keep going, and only about four or five percent of hybrids are blonde with white cat features. Seventy-five percent of that five percent are female. There’s probably only about…two hundred _male, white_ cats that are registered, worldwide. _Maybe_ three hundred, because it’s been a decade or so,” Yixing said, “You’re thinking you’re trying finding a needle in a hay stack, when really, you’re trying to find one needle in a little pouch of needles.”

“So…get a DNA test kit, you say?” Kyungsoo asked.

“Yeah, and send the results back to the labs. They might require spit, or blood, or fur…or maybe even seminal fluid, but I don’t think that’s so much the procedure anymore,” Yixing wandered, “DNA scans these days are rather quick too, they used to take up to six weeks, but now it only takes about two. I can email the Beijing labs for you, the kit is going to be a little expensive but…”

“That’s not a problem,” Kyungsoo said, “I’ll call the ones in Korea and Japan too.”

“Emailing is better,” Yixing added, “Go home tonight, take a couple good pictures of Kai, and compose and email, and I’ll forward it to the people I know. I can push your query to multiple labs that way, and they’ll send you the kits.”

“Thank you so much, Yixing,” Kyungsoo sighed.

“Yeah, anytime,” Yixing added, “Hey, invite me and Chen over soon, I want to see how that cat is doing,” he said lightly, “And you can thank me properly with good cooking.”

“Sounds like a deal!” Kyungsoo cheered, “I haven’t seen Chen in a long time. I’ll even invite Chanyeol and Baekhyun over too.”

“Ah, we can get Baek and Chen to sing together again,” Yixing said, and Kyungsoo recalled a fond memory of a Christmas party a year ago, when the two cats sang a lovely version of Silent Night together. As their clear voices harmonized over the murmur, the whole party went silent, and people even started to hold hands. It lifted everyone’s Christmas spirit, and the cats were the pinnacle of the party that night.

The two of them said their goodbyes, and Kyungsoo hung up the phone, making a mental note to snap a couple pictures of Kai tonight with his camera.


	5. Fourth and Last

 

“A camera?” Kai asked that afternoon when Kyungsoo pulled the Nikon out from its case on a shelf in his home office that night, and adjusted some of the settings on it, looking at the last couple pictures he took before holding it up to his face and snapping a picture of Kai quickly.

Kai gasped at the flash, and his ears stuck up straight as the camera shutters clicked. Kyungsoo turned off the flash on the next one, and held it up to his face.

“Smile!” he said to Kai, who gave him an awkward and sort of cheesy smile, but Kyungsoo took the shot anyway.

Kyungsoo came up to the cat standing by the dining table, and showed him the two pictures he took. In the first one, the flash had made Kai’s eyes look demonic and red from the filter, and in the second one, Kai looked stiff.

“We can do better than that,” Kyungsoo remarked, “Go jump on the couch real quick,” the human said and he held the camera up to his face and followed Kai with it, taking a string of pictures as Kai padded to the couch and used one hand to leap clear over it, effortlessly landing on its cushions. He turned his head over his shoulder to look at Kyungsoo, and the human caught a great shot of the white cat then.

Kyungsoo was grinning from ear to ear as he pulled the camera away from his face.

“I forgot how much I liked taking pictures,” Kyungsoo grinned.

“I don’t think I’ve ever been photographed before today,” Kai stated, his eyes glittering. Kyungsoo took another picture, and watched Kai’s ears react to the sound of the camera shutters again.

Kyungsoo continued to take pictures of Kai. The sound of the camera, and Kyungsoo’s smile and laughing voice brought out a different side of Kai that Kyungsoo hadn’t seen before today; his _playfulness_.

Kai jumped from the white couch to the black, as Kyungsoo continued to snap pictures of him. They chased each other, laughing and poking, making the other giggle then giggle more. Kyungsoo brought out the best smile he had ever seen from Kai, his hazel eyes disappearing into half-moons, and his mouth open wide with laughter.

Kai would slap and bat his hands away when Kyungsoo reached out to poke the hybrid. A couple of times, Kai had even playfully bit him, his tail thrashing with excitement. When Kyungsoo felt Kai’s teeth connect with his forearm the first time, he was almost afraid Kai was warning him to stop, but Kai let go just as quickly as he latched on, eyes glimmering as he jumped away. No broken skin, no marks. A playful bite.

For the first time in months, Kyungsoo _played_ with a hybrid, and he remembered why he was in the profession that he was in in the first place. Working with the interesting species day to day was fulfilling, but playing with Kai that night made him fall in love again.

Kai was unimaginably photogenic.  

After a while, every shot Kyungsoo captured was effortless as the boy relaxed around the camera. It was the late afternoon, they had been playing for a half hour, the camera hanging around Kyungsoo’s neck for the last couple minutes as Kyungsoo chased Kai around the apartment.

Kai ran passed the dining table and the piano, and flung the doors of the balcony open, his arms up to feel the fresh breeze. Kyungsoo followed him, and the light was perfect. The sun was halfway down behind the trees of the small park behind Kyungsoo’s apartment building, and the pale gold beams shone bright. Kai turned around, and Kyungsoo caught the most stunning picture yet, of Kai’s bright smile and dark skin, the sunlight caught in his blond hair, and shone through the pink insides of his fuzzy ears. He looked angelic, with a halo of light around him.

Kyungsoo stopped photographing him then, and Kai followed the human back into the office, where Kyungsoo plugged the camera into his computer and uploaded all of the new photos of the cat.

Kyungsoo saved every one, but picked out two good ones and dropped them onto his desktop, to attach to the email he was going to write to Yixing later.

Before composing the email, he and Kai looked over all the pictures Kyungsoo had taken, and the two had picked out a handful of their personal favorites. Kyungsoo printed them out on the last of the professional printer paper he had, he pinned them up on the bulletin board on the wall by the door that Kai had completely forgotten was there.

“But this one, I think I’m going to take to work, and put it on the wall in the office,” Kyungsoo said, holding up the last one. The grin in the sunlight on the balcony. You could even see Kai’s fluffy tail in the light too, because he was holding it so high at the time, “Hmm…?” Kyungsoo questioned and he took a closer look at the picture, and then turned to look even closer at Kai, specifically at his neck.

“What?” Kai asked, shying away.

“The skin on your neck…” Kyungsoo noted, “It’s all the same! You can’t even tell there was a collar there at all.”

Kai’s ears perked up, and both his hands came up to touch his neck.

“Really?” he asked in disbelief, and turned on his toes to scamper out of the office, and into the adjacent bathroom. The human followed, and Kai flicked on the bathroom light. The hybrid leaned over the counter, tail up, and moved his head all around to get a look at all the angles of his neck in the gold bathroom light.

“Wha…” Kai whispered, “you can’t even tell…” he said, repeating Kyungsoo’s words from earlier. His eyes were wide with excitement and his tail was flicking back and forth. Kyungsoo found him too cute.

That night after dinner, Kyungsoo wrote Kai’s letter to Yixing and sent it off, before claiming it was time to sleep. He walked into the living room to find Kai asleep on the long white couch, his tail and ears disappearing into the fabric in the low light. Kyungsoo made a mental note to get a couch for his office, so Kai could join him in there, as he reached forward and softly pet Kai’s ear, rousing him. Kai opened his bleary eyes, and Kyungsoo’s lips twitched into a fond smile.

“Time for bed, Kai” Kyungsoo whispered. Kai yawned big, his pointy canines showing, and his eyes watering. Kyungsoo watched Kai stagger over to his bedroom, and Kyungsoo went back into his room to brush his teeth. He left his bedroom door open partially as he shut off the light, and crawled into bed.

 

~

 

The next morning, Baekhyun was over bright and early. So early, Kyungsoo exited his bedroom to find Kai and Baekhyun both sitting on the couch in front of the television, in pajamas, and chatting in soft voices. Both cats looked when Kyungsoo entered the room, and both of them greeted the human.

“Good morning,” Kai said with a smile, and Baekhyun got up to hug Kyungsoo in greeting. Kyungsoo gave the smaller cat a quick hug before breaking away.

“Good morning, what are you doing here so early?” Kyungsoo asked with a yawn.

“Chanyeol went to work at five this morning,” Baekhyun said, “so I came down here hoping Kai was up, and he was.”

Kyungsoo yawned again, bigger this time, thankful that he never has to go to work at 5am.

It was overcast out when Kyungsoo went to work. He and Sehun opened the shelter, and fed all the hybrids. When the shelter opened at ten o’clock, Sehun took to his station at the reception desk. Kyungsoo stayed in the back, helping guests find their way, and doing laundry. At noon, two other employees came in, so Kyungsoo disappeared into his office.

He liked being able to look up every once in a while, while he was on the phone or doing computer work, and see that one stunning picture of Kai in the sunset.

Kyungsoo worked through his lunch, and Sehun brought him back bread on his break from the café around the corner. Kyungsoo accepted it gratefully. Sehun lingered in the doorway as Kyungsoo opened the pastry packaging.

“Hey,” Sehun started, “What ever happened to that crazy cat you were fostering?” he asked.

“He’s still with me,” Kyungsoo stated, then looked up from his document, “and he’s not crazy.”

Sehun whistled low, and grinned.

“So, like, we can all assume that you’re keeping him, right?” the blond boy asked, “Two months is kind of a long time, especially for you.”

“What do you mean?” Kyungsoo asked.

“I mean, the longest you’ve kept a hybrid in the past was, like, ten days,” Sehun said, “and I’ve noticed you’ve been in a _really_ good mood lately,” Sehun ticked his head up to the bulletin board above Kyungsoo’s computer, “and then that cute picture of him shows up on your office wall.”

“Baekhyun and Chen are up there as well,” Kyungsoo countered, Sehun was quiet for a moment before he changed the subject, completely.

“Has he gone into heat yet?”

Kyungsoo wasn’t expecting the question and his hands slipped, causing the pen he was holding to fall onto the floor.

“Oh, jeez,” Kyungsoo said and bent to pick up the pen, “Sehun—” he groaned as he sat back up, his face flushed and warm, “You can’t ask me that,” Kyungsoo said.

“Oh, come on!” Sehun said, “That isn’t a raunchy question. I didn’t ask you if the two of you have had sex, I just asked if he’s gone into heat yet.”

“No!” Kyungsoo barked a little, “No, and frankly, I try not to think about it, because I have _no idea_ what I’m going to do what that happens,” Kyungsoo breathed, “he still will barely let me touch him, even after two months. He’s only _just_ started to trust me.”

“What happened to him?” Sehun asked. Kyungsoo’s silence made Sehun regret asking the question.

“A lot of terrible things,” Kyungsoo murmured after a moment, “He’s had a hard and painful life,” was all Kyungsoo said. Sehun looked down at the floor and swallowed.

“Joonmyun just got here,” Sehun said, clearing his throat, “You can go home whenever.”

Sehun left the room, shutting the door behind him. Kyungsoo turned in his office chair to look back up at the picture of Kai. He finished up his work for the day and left a little early. Sehun told him to be safe driving home, because it was raining.

He rode the elevator up to his floor, and walked down the hall to his apartment door. He unlocked the door, stepped inside, and slipped off his shoes with a sigh. He was expecting to find Kai and Baekhyun inside the apartment, but it was quiet when Kyungsoo got home.

The living room was still neat, and the kitchen looked relatively untouched too. He checked Kai’s bedroom, but there were no cats.

“Kai?” Kyungsoo called.

Kyungsoo checked the living room again to see if they were asleep on the couches and he just didn’t notice. Confusion had risen in Kyungsoo’s mind, and panic was slowly creeping in when Kyungsoo checked his bedroom, and Kai and Baekhyun weren’t their either.

Not in the bathrooms, not on the balcony, Kyungsoo even went so far as to check closets and under beds.

But the two cats were not in Kyungsoo’s apartment.

“Kai!” Kyungsoo called, louder. Kai was supposed to tell him if he was ever going to leave the house, it was one of Kyungsoo’s rules…

He immediately went back to the front door, slipping on his shoes again, and walking quickly to the elevator. Kyungsoo rode the elevator up to the top floor, were there were only four apartments, the penthouse ones. The hallway upstairs was much shorter than the one on Kyungsoo’s floor, and the dark haired human went to Chanyeol’s door and knocked quickly and loudly.

Kyungsoo had no idea what he would do if Kai wasn’t at Chanyeol’s.

After a minute, Baekhyun opened the door.

“Ah! Hi, Kyungsoo,” Baekhyun meowed, his face lit up with happiness, his teeth showing. Baekhyun opened the door all the way, “Kai is here. Won’t you come in?” Baekhyun chirped.

Kyungsoo relaxed as he stepped inside the apartment, learning that Kai was indeed here.

Chanyeol’s apartment was three times the size of Kyungsoo’s apartment. It had two stories, and a large living room with a fireplace, and bright red couches. On one side of the living room were all of Chanyeol’s instruments, guitars on stands, a drum set, a piano, and a synthesizer. His home looked more like a music gallery than a home, with the album artwork on the walls.

Light footsteps came padding down the stairs and Kyungsoo turned in time to see Kai enter the room. Kai’s hazel eyes immediately found Kyungsoo and he ran up to the human, and took his hand.

“Have you been here before?” Kai asked excitedly, “Baekhyun’s house is so big. His room is amazing!”

Kyungsoo laughed, the minor fear he had been awash with the last ten minutes was gone now.

“I have been up here before,” Kyungsoo said, “Are you ready to go home, or do you want to stay here and play?” Kyungsoo asked.

“He should go home,” said Chanyeol’s deep voice as the tall man came into the room from around the corner. All eyes met with Chanyeol’s. The red-head was shirtless, wearing skinny jeans, and you could see the elastic of his boxers peeking out, “I have some unfinished business with my cat,” he said, his voice thick and gruff. Baekhyun started to giggle, and Kyungsoo put and arm around Kai’s shoulders.

“Okay, Chanyeol says go, so let’s go,” Kyungsoo laughed forcefully, steering Kai out the front door.

“Bye, Baek!” Kai called over his shoulder.

“Bye, Kai!” Baekhyun chirped back, and Chanyeol shut and locked the door after them. Baekhyun and Chanyeol grinned at each other.

Kai was thankfully oblivious to Chanyeol and Baekhyun’s antics, he chattered to Kyungsoo as they walked to the elevator together, telling Kyungsoo about his day at Baekhyun’s house.

Kyungsoo ordered food to go, feeling too tired to cook, and had it delivered to the apartment. The two sat on the couch together, on either sides, and Kyungsoo put on a show, and then a movie. They ate, and by the ending credits, Kai’s head was in Kyungsoo’s lap, and the hybrid was asleep.

Kyungsoo turned off the television, throwing the house into darkness and silence, the only light was from down the front hallway, in the foyer. Kyungsoo looked down at the beautiful boy’s face and listened to the rain tapping on the windows. He loved the sound, ever since he was a child.

He leaned his head back against the couch, and listened to the rain, and felt the warmth of this being’s weight on him. He took a deep relaxing breath and smiled.

He felt lucky.

After taking a few moments to bask in this feeling, he threaded his fingers into blonde hair, rousing the hybrid in his lap.

“Kai,” Kyungsoo whispered, “time for bed.”

The hybrid murmured, and whimpered in his sleep. His ears flicked back and he pushed himself off Kyungsoo, only to collapse on the couch again, his ears returning forward and his face relaxing again. Kyungsoo chuckled as he got up off the couch, and went to his room.

The human washed his face, and brushed his teeth, and when he came back out to check, Kai had disappeared into his room, like he tends to do. The guest bedroom door was shut.

Only an empty living room, and rain against the windows.

 

~

 

At 2AM that night, Kyungsoo awoke to the sound of Kai screaming his name.

“Kyungsoo!!” the hybrid screeched, as he slammed Kyungsoo’s bedroom door open. Kyungsoo sat upright immediately. He was startled, and he flicked on the bedside light. The glow illuminated the dark room, and Kyungsoo took in the completely crazed hybrid.

“Kai,” Kyungsoo gasped, completely alert despite his abrupt wake up, “What happened?” he asked. Kai stood in Kyungsoo’s doorway looking like he just woke up from a nightmare. He was wearing a large grey sleep shirt, and a park of black boxers, his hair was a mess, his eyes were wide and his pupils like slivers.

“He’s here!” Kai cried, “I can hear him!”

“What?” Kyungsoo asked, confused, “ _Who_?”

“Shh!!” Kai hissed and both of them fell silent, Kyungsoo stared at the hybrid as Kai’s ears swiveled around, alert and listening for things far beyond what Kyungsoo’s ears could detect. All the human heard was the rain outside.

“Kai, no one is here but you and me,” Kyungsoo whispered, “Were you having a bad dream?” he asked, concerned.

“SHH!!” Kai hissed again, and Kyungsoo fell silent, listening for footsteps, or anything. After a moment, a flicker of lightning from outside the window caught in the corner of Kyungsoo’s eyes, a second later a crack of thunder boomed over the city of Seoul. Kai yelped and leapt, his tail doubling in size.

“It’s him!” Kai cried, his whole body quaking, “It’s his gun! He’s come back to kill me,” Kyungsoo watched Kai sink to the floor, his breaths were coming out in gasps and put his hands over his head, “Kyungsoo, he’s gonna kill me,” Kai repeated, and Kyungsoo got out of his bed, wearing nothing but boxer shorts.

“Kai, come here. It’s just the thunder,” Kyungsoo spoke calmly, as he sat on the bare floor to sit with Kai. Kai peeked up at him from his arms, “It’s all alright, Kai. He’s not coming for you. I’m here,” Kyungsoo whispered, his chocolate eyes warm, “He’s not going to hurt you. That’s not a gun, it’s just the thunder,” and offered his hand out. Kai took one hand away from his face and sought out Kyungsoo’s hand.

Another clap of thunder made Kai squeak and bury his head again, his ears flattening back.

“Come on, Kai, stand up,” Kyungsoo murmured and took both of Kai’s hands. He stood, and then pulled the hybrid up with him. Kai was taller than Kyungsoo, and Kyungsoo pulled the boy into his arms and shushed him, trying to soothe the shivers out of him.

“If he was really here, and he really wanted you, he’d have to kill me first,” Kyungsoo said and softly laid his chin on Kai’s shoulder. Kai gripped him back hard, and Kyungsoo backed the two of them up, pulling Kai with him, “If it would make you feel safer, you can sleep in here with me tonight.”

Kai hesitated as he looked over Kyungsoo’s shoulder to the master bed, large and intimidating, with black sheets. Kai had only been in this room a handful of times, the smell of Kyungsoo sleeping space used to scare Kai, but now the raw smell of Kyungsoo made him feel safer than he had in years. The smell of this human made his anxiety melt away.

Kai nodded, and Kyungsoo pulled Kai down onto the bed with him. Kyungsoo flipped up the sheets and nodded for Kai to get under them. Kai slipped under the blankets, the bed still warm from Kyungsoo’s sleep, and the smell of Kyungsoo invaded his nose. Kyungsoo turned off the bedside light, plunging the room back into darkness, and he slid down into the bed too. Kyungsoo relaxed into the pillows and opened his arms for Kai. The hybrid folded himself into Kyungsoo’s body, wrapping his arms under Kyungsoo’s, and holding the smaller man to him by the shoulders. Kyungsoo wrapped one arm around Kai’s waist and rubbed his back softly. Kai stiffened and whimpered when another thunder clap rolled across the sky.

“Shhh,” Kyungsoo murmured soothingly when Kai pushed even closer, trying to lull the creature in his arms to sleep, “it’s alright, sweet cat, it’s just the thunder.”

Kai nuzzled his face deeper into Kyungsoo’s neck, trying to drown out the sound, when his nose connected with Kyungsoo’s black hair, and Kai smelled Kyungsoo up close like this. Kyungsoo’s scent made him sigh, and his shoulders shivered as the tension left him.

“The storm will pass,” Kyungsoo whispered as he idly stroked Kai’s spine with one hand. Kai kept his face in Kyungsoo’s neck, and with every inhale of breath, he became more relaxed. He realized after a few minutes, that Kyungsoo’s bed was even softer than his own.

Kyungsoo’s heart beat rhythmically behind his rib cage as he held the boy close to him like this.

At some point in the night, Kai had fallen asleep, because the next thing he knew, he was waking up in the bright morning light, his arm flung over Kyungsoo’s middle. Kai sat up quickly, recalling the events of last night, he took another look at the human Kyungsoo, asleep on his back, still passed out.

Kai quietly got out of Kyungsoo’s bed, and crept out the door before the human could awake.

 

~

 

Waking up alone in his bed the following morning made Kyungsoo’s heart break.

Kai did not come into Kyungsoo’s room after that one night, and although Kyungsoo had high hopes, he didn’t push the subject, and didn’t bring it up in conversation. It was a one night thing. Kai only needed a little reassurance in that moment and he went back to being his quiet, but happy, self. The dangers of the other night passed just like the rain.

Kyungsoo gave Kai a couple days warning this time before he invited Yixing, Chanyeol, and their cats over for dinner that following Friday night.

Kai greeted Chanyeol and Baekhyun at the door, and Baekhyun arrived with a large gift bag. Kai eyed it with excitement, the bright tissue paper sticking out the top, but Baekhyun pulled it away from Kai.

“This is for Kyungsoo,” he crooned, and skittered past Kai after he took off his shoes to greet Kyungsoo in the kitchen. Kai looked up at Chanyeol and politely greeted the human with a bow, who bowed back and then grinned down at the cat.

“You look very well!” Chanyeol commented, “Kyungsoo must be treating you nicely,” he said, and Kai nodded.

“I’m very happy here,” he said, and Chanyeol’s eyes twinkled with knowing.

Baekhyun presented the gift to Kyungsoo with a shy smile and meek ears.

“I’m sorry I made such a mess of your house,” he said again and Kyungsoo wiped his hands on his red apron before taking the gift bag from the cat. Kyungsoo reached up to ruffle Baekhyun’s hair a little before he set the gift on the counter to open it.

As expected, inside was a lovely decorative glass bowl, still in its box, and a pretty red pillow for his couch. Kyungsoo thanked Baekhyun and opened the bowl. It was a brilliant blue, with bevels and imperfections in it, and Kyungsoo immediately rinsed the bowl in the sink, and set it in its new home on the edge of the counter. His keys, wallet, and cell phone felt out of place just hanging around the counter space, and Kyungsoo immediately put all the items inside, smiling to himself at the organization and looked at Baekhyun.

“Nice choice!” he commented, “I like it a lot, thank you,” he said and Baekhyun beamed, before Kyungsoo shooed him out of the kitchen.

“Kaaaiiii,” Baekhyun sang as he ran up to the white cat to greet him properly. Baekhyun was surprised when Kai hugged him, and smelled his hair a little, “You haven’t met Chen, have you?” Baekhyun asked as the two pulled away, and Kai shook his head, “He’s a fancy cat,” Baekhyun said, “Doctor Zhang takes really good care of him.”

“What makes him fancy?”

“ _Everything_ ,” Baekhyun laughed, “He gets a haircut every two weeks. He’s got papers. His tail is really fluffy… oh, and his collar is _really_ expensive,” Baekhyun explained.

“Papers…?” Kai asked, confused.

The doorbell rang again, and both cats looked at the door, then to Kyungsoo. Kyungsoo merely nodded his head in the direction of the front door and both cats ran, tripping over each other, to get to the door.

Doctor Zhang stood in the doorway with a kind smile, and a manila envelope in his hand. Behind him was the doctor’s cat, holding a large white box.

“Baekhyun, Kai! So nice to see you!” Lay cheered as he walked through the front door, wearing a nice sweater and jeans, and not a doctors’ coat, “You look so healthy since the first time we met,” he commented to Kai, “And so handsome too! It’s amazing what time and patience can do.”

“Thank you!” Kai chirped.

“Chen!!” Baekhyun yelled, and Kai’s eyes slid back to the third hybrid in the tiny hallway, his pointed ears looked exotic.

“Baek!!” Chen yelled with equal enthusiasm as the two stepped out of their shoes in the small entryway.

Chen _did_ look like a fancy cat.

His glossy black hair was crisply cut, his dark eyes were almond shaped, his jaw structured, and the corners of his mouth were upturned, making his features look very feline. His black and grey ears had skinny points at the tip, and there was thick lighter fur coming out from the inside.

Kai looked down at the elegant black collar around Chen’s neck. It was made of fine leather, and had glimmering silver rhinestones encrusted in it. Chen’s (virtually useless) human ears were pierced too, making him look really fashionable.

Baekhyun bounced as he approached Chen, but couldn’t hug him because of the large white box in his hands. Kai followed them all into the kitchen, his nose working into overtime, smelling unfamiliar cat and frosting. Kai caught sight of the big, fluffy black and grey tail, and was mesmerized by how soft it looked, and how much of a pain it must have been to brush, wash, and maintain such splendid fur.

“Cake?” Baekhyun asked, looking up into Chen’s eyes as the dark cat set the box on the counter in the kitchen. The new cat grinned at them both showing his brilliant white teeth, and pointed little canines.

“ _Cup_ cakes,” he corrected, “Vanilla for us, chocolate for the humans,” he added.

Chen set the box of cupcakes down on the counter by Kyungsoo’s new glass bowl and greeted the other humans politely with a bow.

“What kind of cat are you?” Kai asked Chen, “Baekhyun said you had ‘papers’?” he asked, inching forward slightly to get a better whiff of Chen. Chen looked unperturbed, nor shocked by the sudden question.

“I’m a Maine Coon,” Chen said, “A winter cat. What kind of cat are _you_?” Chen asked, looking up at Kai’s rare white and pink ears.

“I dunno,” Kai said with a little shrug, “I don’t have any papers. I’m just white. I guess you could say I’m a winter cat too,” Kai said, and flicked his white tail around to the side of him, Chen’s eye catching it. Baekhyun laughed at Kai’s joke.

“I don’t believe that,” Chen said as Kyungsoo shooed the cats out of the kitchen, “I can’t really tell, but you look like a British Shorthair,” Chen said as the three made their way to the living room, to continue their chatter elsewhere.

“But his fur isn’t exactly _short_ …” Baekhyun commented, tugging on Kai’s fluffy tail a little and the white cat leapt with shock, before pulling his fuzzy tail out of Baekhyun’s grasp.

The three human men stayed in the kitchen to chat while Kyungsoo continued to watch the food he was making.

“That cat has pulled a complete one-eighty since the first time I saw him,” Yixing murmured, and handed Kyungsoo the manila envelope, “These are Kai’s healthy blood test results,” Yixing said, and Kyungsoo took the files gratefully, “And the three big labs from China, Japan, and South Korea are all sending you DNA test kits, they should arrive at your shelter on Monday.”

“Thank you so much, Yixing,” Kyungsoo said, “I really appreciate what you’re doing for us.”

“ _Us_?” Chanyeol quoted with a sly smile, and Yixing grinned as well, “So when are you going to put a collar on him?” he asked. Kyungsoo shot a glance over at Kai, who was hovering around Chen, still smelling him and deciding his opinion of the long-haired cat, while Baekhyun attempted to set up a game on the Wii U.

“I don’t know about that…” Kyungsoo said, his voice dropping low so the cats wouldn’t hear him, “he doesn’t like it when things touch his neck. He’s even requested that I _don’t_ touch him there,” Kyungsoo explained. Yixing and Chanyeol both looked over at the three cats, all very different in their own ways.

“They’re all different fur lengths…” Chanyeol mused, “Short, long, and medium.”

“And different flavors of chocolate,” Yixing commented, “dark, milk, and white.”

“He looks out of place, being the _only one_ without a collar, though,” Chanyeol stated, not being very subtle, and Kyungsoo looked back again, before turning back to the stove.

“I’ll come up with something,” Kyungsoo murmured.

“So you are keeping him, then?” Chanyeol pushed. Kyungsoo smiled to himself, then looked up at his friends and guests.

“Yes,” Kyungsoo admitted, “I don’t think my house would feel the same if he left,” the man admitted, “Kai requires… a _lot_ of patience, and I don’t think he’d be comfortable with another human…” he added.

“Welcome to the hybrid owners club,” Chanyeol cheered and clapped Kyungsoo on the back, “It’s a very satisfying life.”

The dinner tasted even more fabulous than it smelled; fancy steaks, and all the right side dishes to go with it. Kai remarked that he didn’t think he’d ever tasted anything this delicious in his life, which made Kyungsoo beam. He also noticed that this time, Kai took his time, cutting his steak into smaller bites, and eating at a normal pace with the others; something that Baekhyun had taught him.

After dinner, they played a few video games, and everyone had a cupcake. Baekhyun and Chen each reached for a vanilla one, but Kai took a chocolate one. Both the other cats stared as Kai took a large bite of it, brown frosting getting on his upper lip and nose. He giggled a little and wiped his face off with a napkin. Chen and Baekhyun looked at each other, before looking back at the white cat.

“Aren’t you gonna get a stomach ache?” Baekhyun asked. Kai shook his head.

“Nope,” he chirped, “Chocolate doesn’t bother me, neither does alcohol,” he added. Chen scoffed in envy.

“I had a stomach ache for two days the last time I tried chocolate,” he murmured, “It tasted _so_ good, but it was _not_ worth it.”

“Yeah, I had _a_ glass of wine _once_ …” Baekhyun said, “It tasted awful, and then I went to the hospital, because my kidney shut down.”

“Liver,” Chanyeol corrected as he licked frosting from the corner of his mouth, “Your liver failed, and thank God I was there with you that night,” the tall red-head said, and shook his head, “Most terrifying night of my life,” he commented. Baekhyun moved over a little and rubbed up into Chanyeol’s shoulder, purring, and taking another bite of his vanilla cupcake.

“That was the first time we met,” Yixing recalled, “You brought Baek to my clinic, and he stayed with us for almost four days. You were lucky,” Yixing said to Baekhyun, “Because literally any more alcohol would have killed you.”

“But I’m okay!” Baekhyun cheered, “And I didn’t die, and two years later we’re all friends!” the Havana brown was trying to lighten the mood.

“…My brother can drink _milk_ ,” Kai added from nowhere, effectively lightening the mood by himself, “I’m lac..lact…”

“ _Lactose_ intolerant,” Kyungsoo finished for him.

“Yes, that,” Kai continued, “But _he_ can drink all the milk he wants,” Kai said, with a little eye roll, “I used to get very jealous because it smelled so good, but when I drank it, it made my stomach hurt.”

“What’s your brother’s name?” Baekhyun asked curiously.

“Jongin,” Kai answered, “I haven’t seen him in a very long time though,” he added a little quieter.

“ _Jongin, Jongin, Jongin_ …” Baekhyun murmured under his breath, before he took another bite of his cupcake, getting white frosting on the tip of his nose.

It was getting late, and Yixing announced he had work early tomorrow, so the man and his cat left, leaving the leftover cupcakes (and many ‘thank yous’) with Kyungsoo and Kai.

Chanyeol moved to get up as well, and Baekhyun punched Kai’s shoulder lightly before dashing off the couch, away from Kai’s swipe. Before Chanyeol left, he turned to Kyungsoo with a request.

“Next weekend I’m flying out to L.A. for my sister’s wedding, I’ll be gone Thursday night through Sunday. I’d bring Baek, but he doesn’t fly very well, and seventeen hours is too long for him to be on an airplane,” the musician said and Baekhyun nodded in agreement, “Can Baekhyun come and stay with you and Kai for the four days that I’m gone?”

“Sure, that sounds fine,” Kyungsoo agreed, and Baekhyun jumped with joy before rubbing up onto Kyungsoo for a second.

“Kai and I are gonna have so much fun!!” Baekhyun cheered as he bounced to his owner’s side. Everyone said their good nights, and the dark cat followed Chanyeol out the door.

Kyungsoo left the dishes in the sink, and collapsed onto the white couch, taking up all of it, sighing. He heard Kai’s soft footsteps, and Kai sat on the floor next to Kyungsoo, and laid his head back on the human’s stomach.

“Dinner was delicious,” Kai whispered. Kyungsoo didn’t open his eyes, but he smiled.

“You’re welcome,” Kyungsoo answered fondly, “I like having people over every once in a while, but _man_ ,” Kyungsoo sighed, “I love the silence of this apartment,” the human lifted his arm up off the couch and felt for Kai. He wrapped his arm around Kai’s shoulders and Kai scooted over, closer to Kyungsoo’s body so it was comfortable for Kyungsoo’s arm to hang around him.

The little gesture, of Kai inching closer, made Kyungsoo’s smile widen. Kai leaned his head back after a moment, and the back of his head and ears touched Kyungsoo’s ribs.

“Do you work tomorrow?” Kai asked, and Kyungsoo nodded.

“I do, but not until the afternoon,” he murmured, “Say, why don’t we go out?” Kyungsoo mused.

“ _Out_?” Kai asked, confused.

“Outside. Shopping,” Kyungsoo answered, “We can go buy you some new clothes. And seeing Chen’s hair tonight made me realize that you need a haircut,” Kyungsoo laughed and ruffled Kai’s unruly blond locks, then ran a hand through his own hair, “Actually, I could use one too,” the human chuckled.

 

~

 

It was the first time Kai had left the apartment building. He had been upstairs to Baekhyun and Chanyeol’s house once, but he hadn’t even ridden the elevator by himself, Baekhyun went with him.

Today, he and Kyungsoo were actually going to go outside the apartment together.

Kyungsoo woke the hybrid up with a knock on his bedroom door, and they both dressed and left the house before even having breakfast. Kai was wearing his one pair of good jeans, and a black sweat shirt that was Kyungsoo’s from college. They rode the elevator down to the garage in silence, there was another couple in the elevator coming down, so Kai stood quietly behind Kyungsoo, one hand pinching the back of Kyungsoo’s shirt. Instead of going down to the basement and getting in the car, Kyungsoo stopped off at the lobby, and the two walked half a block down the street to a café on the corner, just a minute’s walk from Kyungsoo’s apartment.

The work rush had just ended, so the sidewalks weren’t packed, but the amount of smells and other humans clearly made Kai uneasy, so Kyungsoo softly took his cat’s hand and smiled.

“If you don’t let go, you won’t get lost,” he said, and Kai nodded, allowing Kyungsoo to lead him down the street.

The café on the corner was owned by a sweet older woman, who had two female cats of her own that worked the front counter. The chipper orange tabby at the register who took their order couldn’t take her eyes off Kai, who was caught off guard when she commented on how beautiful Kai’s ears and tail were.

Kyungsoo had to nudge a ‘thank you’ out of Kai, who almost blushed at her compliment. Kyungsoo ordered a hot vanilla coffee, and two muffins. The female cat threw in a small steamed milk drink for Kai for free.

“Is this okay for cats to drink?” Kai asked her, his eyes wide. She grinned and nodded.

“It won’t make your tummy upset. It’s steamed soy milk,” she chirped, “be careful though, it’s hot.”

The two thanked her graciously before leaving the café, and walking back towards Kyungsoo’s apartments, Kai holding onto Kyungsoo’s sleeve. They got into Kyungsoo’s car, and Kai took his first sip of the steamed milk.

“Mmmmmm,” the hybrid purred deeply, his eyes dancing, and he took another deep sip, before pulling away, his whole face smiling, and his tongue coming out to lick his lips. Kyungsoo mused out loud that he wished he had his camera, making Kai grin. They drove first to a barber shop, so he and Kai could get haircuts.

The ladies all cooed and cried when Kyungsoo and Kai walked in, and Kyungsoo had to calm Kai down for a second, when the girls reached forward to touch Kai’s hair, scaring the cat momentarily.

They were immediately seen to, both of them getting their hair washed and cut. Kai didn’t enjoy having his head, hair, and ears sprayed with water, but that part was over quickly. Kyungsoo’s haircut was quicker than Kai’s, because the stylist had to section out the hybrid’s hair from his ear fur before she could take her clippers to it. The buzz of the shears scared Kai a lot, but the woman was very patient and she touched the razor to Kai’s hand first, showing that it was okay, before going to the back of his neck. His tail puffed up when she ran the buzzing machine across the back of his neck, and when she would use soft brush to brush away loose hair off his neck.

Kyungsoo was breathless when Kai got up from the chair.

His pale blond hair glowed, and could no longer be considered a mess. Long on the top, and parted to one side with a sophisticated fade. A gentleman’s cut. The top was coiffed elegantly with product and trained fingers. All the girls said he looked like a model, or a k-pop idol.

Kyungsoo watched Kai’s face as he stared at himself in the reflections of the mirrors in the salon, turning his head this way and that to see his angles, his eyes wide. He really looked like a different cat now, a confident smile on his face and a bit more bounce in his step. Kyungsoo put a bill into Kai’s hand and told him to tip his stylist. Kai turned and gave the woman the money and she beamed.

“In three weeks, come back to see us,” she cheered, “We’ll make sure you stay looking handsome.”

They left hand in hand again, and Kai flashed them all a big smile and a thank you as they left, making all the stylists swoon.

Next stop was a specialty hybrid clothing store across town, where all the pants came with tail holes, and the hats came with ear holes, and some of the dresses for girls came with holes in the back too.

Kyungsoo couldn’t take his eyes off Kai.

The pure white cat outshone every single thing and person in the room. The employees and other shoppers were staring at him and whispering too, as Kai picked out article after article of clothing that caught his eye. Kyungsoo followed the hybrid up and down the isles until Kai had picked out almost a whole new wardrobe.

“Are you sure you want to buy me all of this?” Kai asked, his ears falling sheepishly.

“Of course!” Kyungsoo said, “You’ve been wearing the same hand-me-downs from me and Baekhyun for the past month. It’s time I got you your own clothing.”

Kyungsoo bought Kai new underwear, socks, sweater, a couple new pairs of jeans, a handful of shirts, and a brand new pair of black and white converse shoes.

While Kyungsoo was at the checkout counter, he looked over his shoulder to see Kai eyeing a small display of collars by the entrance. Kai’s tail fluffed up when he touched a leather collar with studs on it, then reached to feel a softer nylon collar.

Kyungsoo came up behind him when he was done paying.

“See one you like?” Kyungsoo asked, making Kai jump, his tail fluffing up.

“N-not really…” Kai answered.

Kai wanted to change his clothes immediately, and he did so in the dressing room, throwing his old jeans and sweater into one of the shopping bags.

When he emerged from the dressing room, Kyungsoo couldn’t help but smile. Kai had the biggest, proudest, most child-like grin on his face when he came through the door in his new skinny jeans, and a royal blue graphic tee, but his shoe laces weren’t tied.

He trotted up to Kyungsoo with a toothy grin, not knowing something was incredibly amiss. The cat was just so happy.

Kyungsoo praised Kai, and told him how nice he looked, and how good his taste was as he knelt down in front of the snow white cat to tie up the laces on the boy’s new shoes. When he stood again, saying it was time to leave, Kai took his hand without hesitation, his snowy ears high.

People who passed them and saw the display couldn’t tell who was more delighted, the human, or the hybrid.

After they took all of Kai’s bags to Kyungsoo’s car, Kyungsoo took out his phone and googled the closest pet shop. Seeing that there was one just around the corner, Kyungsoo locked his car, and the two walked there, hand in hand.

People’s eyes were naturally drawn to Kai. His new haircut, new clothes, and completely doting human made his confidence bloom. He was tall, handsome, clean cut, and his white ears and blond hair stuck out from the normal black and brown haired people around them. Kyungsoo knew he paled in comparison, but that wasn’t the point.

The point was that Kai’s tail was held high with happiness, and was swishing to and fro with his steps. He looked amazing, and healthy, and _happy_.

The wild hybrid that hissed at everyone who came close to him was just a memory now.

They entered the pet shop, and Kai left Kyungsoo’s side to wander and look at the kittens and puppies. Kyungsoo looked for a display of ID tags, and found one near the front counter. He didn’t like the idea of a tag shaped like a bone, or a heart, and the ones with glitter epoxy and rhinestones didn’t suit his taste either. At the bottom of the rack, there were simple silver tags in the shape of circular coins. He picked one up and turned it over in his hand, on the front of it was an uppercase ‘K’, on the back was the blank, engravable side.

“Can I get this engraved here?” Kyungsoo asked the shop keeper. The employee turned to Kyungsoo, who had just had his eyes fixed on the glamourous white hybrid in the room, before turning to look at Kyungsoo again.

“What?” he asked lamely. Kyungsoo grinned, and repeated his question.

“Yeah, the engraving machine is over there in the corner, you buy the tag first,” he explained then looked back at Kai, “He’s so _pretty_ ,” the boy cooed, “I’ve never seen a white one before,” he commented as Kyungsoo came up with the ‘K’ tag.

“Yeah, he is pretty unique,” Kyungsoo added with a fond smile, and watched Kai press his face and hands against the glass to grin at the kittens, his tail flicking back and forth with curiosity.

“Is this all for you today?” the shopkeeper asked, finally turning to give Kyungsoo all of his attention.

“No, I think we’re still looking,” Kyungsoo answered, “Can I leave this up here?” he asked about the tag, and the boy nodded. Kyungsoo walked around to Kai’s side, and looked at the beautiful green and white bird in the cage Kai was in front of.

“We’re not here for pets,” Kyungsoo said and took Kai’s hand, pulling him away from the animals. Kyungsoo passed the aisle with the dog collars, which would surely fit around the hybrid’s neck, but went down the aisle with the cat collars instead, “I have a cute idea,” Kyungsoo said and picked up a black nylon, break-away cat collar with a tiny black bell on it. He unclipped it and then re-clipped it around Kai’s wrist. He didn’t even need to adjust it.

“There!” Kyungsoo cheered, “A perfect collar— _just for you_ ,” the human hummed.

Kai’s face lit up. His ears flew forward, and he looked down into Kyungsoo’s face with excitement, and shock, and hope.

“For real?!” the cat gasped and looked down at his wrist and up at the human a few times. The human nodded.

“Uh-huh, I’ll buy you a tag and we’ll put my phone number on it—” Kyungsoo added, “—and it doesn’t have to go on your neck.”

Kai rattled his wrist, and the jingling bell made his smile broaden.

“Does this mean I’m yours now?” Kai asked, “And you’re not going to get rid of me?” Kyungsoo shook his head.

“No, I couldn’t bear to get rid of you,” Kyungsoo said, “I’d miss you too much,” at those words, Kai jumped forward and hugged Kyungsoo quickly.

“Fourth, and _last_ , master!” he spoke into Kyungsoo’s shoulder.

Hearing the word ‘master’ slip from Kai’s lips made something small click in the back of his head, before the two of them went back to the counter to pay. Kai’s smile never left his face, and he didn’t even take the thin wristlet off when he held his arm out for the employee to scan it.

They wandered over to the corner machine to engrave the tag, and Kai watched the small laser etch the three letters of his name, Kyungsoo’s phone number, and address into the back of the coin.

When it was finished, Kyungsoo clipped the shiny new ‘K’ tag right next to the bell, and they left the shop hand in hand. With every step and movement, the bell and tag jangled together merrily.


	6. Baekhyun Stays for the Weekend

 

The weekend passed very quickly.

The lab kits arrived on Monday, and each one asked for a saliva sample and a fur sample, which was easy enough. Kyungsoo let Kai handle the scissors and Kai cut a few hairs off the tip of his tail. Afterward, Kai spat inside of vial after vial until all three were all full up, then Kyungsoo rewrapped the kits and sent them back off in the mail to the labs.

Soon, it was the day Baekhyun was supposed to come down from upstairs to stay with Kyungsoo and Kai while Chanyeol was in the states.

Baekhyun arrived Thursday night with a big duffle bag, stuffed full, and a play station in his arms.

“Sleepover!!” Baekhyun yelled and ran barefoot right passed Kyungsoo and into the apartment to greet Kai. Kyungsoo laughed, and Chanyeol leaned down to set Baek’s sneakers on the floor in the foyer.

“If he breaks anything, keep a list of it, and I’ll be sure to have him replace it,” Chanyeol said to Kyungsoo, who laughed again, “Baek, I’m leaving!” Chanyeol called. Baekhyun put the game system on the couch delicately, and then dumped his duffle on the floor. He turned and ran back down the hall, throwing himself into Chanyeol’s embrace. Kai stood at the end of the small hallway, and watched Baekhyun push himself onto his toes to kiss Chanyeol on the mouth.

“I’ll miss you,” Baekhyun said.

“I’ll miss you too,” Chanyeol replied as they pulled away from each other, “be good,” he reminded his cat as he backed out the front door.

“I will!” Baekhyun meowed, “see ya Sunday!” he called as the front door shut. Baekhyun turned and jogged back into the apartment to purr up on Kai, who purred back just a little.

“Look, look!” Kai chirped and held up his jingling wrist. Baekhyun examined the tiny collar, meant to go around the neck of an actual cat, and his eyes went wide.

“Your own _collar_!” Baekhyun cheered, and Kai’s eyes disappeared into half-moons with his megawatt grin, “And a sexy new haircut too?” he added, “Chen and you are both so fancy!” he cried, but was only off-put for a moment before he turned and grabbed the play station again, “I need your help setting this thing up,” Baekhyun said and pulled Kai around to the television so they could plug in the play station.

Kyungsoo set up the spare room for Baekhyun, and only then realized that Kai’s room would be occupied tonight. He wondered if Kai would sleep with Baekhyun or with him. He wondered if he should offer.

After dinner, before retiring for the night, Kyungsoo bent into Kai’s ear and whispered.

“Where are you sleeping tonight?”

Both cats’ ears flickered at the question, and Kai looked over at Baekhyun and then back around to Kyungsoo.

“Uhh…” Kai started, “I don’t know.”

“I’ll leave my bedroom door open for you. If you want to crawl into my bed with me, you may…” Kyungsoo offered, and put his hand on the top of Kai’s head to rub an ear affectionately.

“You two don’t…sleep in the same bed?” Baekhyun asked, his tone confused, and he put a hand over his mouth. He looked back and forth between the human and the white hybrid before he asked, looking directly at Kai, “You two haven’t had sex, have you?”

Kai’s ears flicked out of Kyungsoo’s hands and flattened back to his head. Kyungsoo immediately took his hand away from Kai’s head and stared at Baekhyun in shock, cringing at his total forwardness. Sometimes, the Havana had no filter. He wished deep in his soul that he wasn’t a part of this conversation right now, but it was impossible to walk away.

Kai’s ears flicked backward, flattening to his head.

“ _No_ ,” he hissed, “not all of us crave affection twenty-four seven and have a ton of boyfriends and girlfriends like _you_ do,” Kai almost snarled. Baekhyun scoffed in response, his tail flicking.

“I’ll have you know, that I am _faithful_ to my master, Park Chanyeol. But with his permission… I can have fun with all the other kitties whenever I want,” Baekhyun finished quickly and he leaned back on the couch, “But Chanyeol and I are not the weird ones here.”

 “We’re _not_ weird!” Kai hissed for real this time, “And I am faithful to my master too,” he added under his breath.

Kyungsoo felt ten feet tall when Kai said that, and effectively ended a conversation that could have been disastrous. The human had to be up early for work, so he bid them both good night, and the cats stayed up late to play video games.

Sometime around midnight Baekhyun turned off the game.

“I’m getting tired. Are you gonna sleep in Kyungsoo’s room?” the Havana whispered, “Or are you gonna couch it? _Oooor_ are you gonna crawl into bed with _me_?” Baekhyun said and did a silly, suggestive dance. Kai smacked his shoulder for even suggesting that.

“I think I’m going to try and sleep…” Kai trailed off, then looked back over his shoulder at Kyungsoo’s partially ajar bedroom door.

“Yeah, you should,” Baekhyun said, and nodded in that direction, “Cats are supposed to sleep with their masters.”

Kai looked back at Baekhyun with a hurt expression and Baekhyun apologized.

“Sorry…” he whispered, “sometimes I forget…” the two friends stood there in the almost pitch black hallway awkwardly. Baekhyun reached up to scratch the back of one of his ears, “If you wanna cuddle with me instead, that’s cool. I promise not to make it weird.”

“No,” Kai whispered, “You’ll always find a way to make it weird,” he joked, then turned around and walked back across the living room. Baekhyun laughed and bid him goodnight before he stumbled back into the guest bedroom.

Kai tried to be quiet as he slipped inside Kyungsoo’s master bedroom.

The human became half-awake when he heard the familiar metal tinkling of a cat collar and felt the bed shift with Kai’s weight. He pretended to stay asleep, and Kai lay himself down on Kyungsoo’s pillows, a little ways away from him. He didn’t get under the sheets, the hybrid relaxed on top of the blankets instead of in them.

Kyungsoo settled back into sleep with a smile on his face.

It may not have been picture perfect, but it was something special.

Kai was awake for a long while, listening to the human’s soft, slow breaths, finding the soft rhythm. Kyungsoo mumbled in his sleep and turned over, his back to Kai. When he did, Kai pulled forward to smell Kyungsoo’s hair.

Just like the last time, the concentrated smell of the human made Kai’s body relax. He inched forward on the bed a little bit more, rested his head on the same pillow, and eventually allowed himself to be lulled to sleep by the familiar smell of Kyungsoo.

 

~

 

Kyungsoo thought it was a miracle that Kai stayed the whole night.

Kyungsoo rolled over, and came face to face with blond hair on his pillow. Kyungsoo pulled back and instantly smiled when he realized it was Kai. He pulled one arm from under the covers, to softly reach for Kai’s face and brush away the loose hairs. Kai’s face scrunched a little at the touch and he reached up to brush the hand away, moaning sleepily as he rolled over onto his stomach.

Sometime during the night, Kai had stripped his shirt, and was laying on Kyungsoo’s bed wearing nothing but flannel pajama bottoms. The curve of Kai’s spine and the elegant white tail flowing out from the hole in the seat of the pants made Kyungsoo’s heart beat a little faster. He couldn’t believe Kai was here with him.

Kyungsoo took another moment to take in Kai’s sleeping form. His bronze skin looked baby smooth. His body was slender and muscled, no longer boney. He looked so peaceful, like the abuse had never happened at all.

Kyungsoo reached out and ran his fingertips down Kai’s shoulder and back, his fingers just a whisper. Kai didn’t even respond to the touch, and Kyungsoo bravely touched Kai’s white tail, wrapping his hand around the appendage and pulling it softly through his fingers. The fur was silky smooth, and wispy to the touch.

Kai didn’t react again, and Kyungsoo reached forward again, this time grabbing the tail closer to the base, and running his hand slowly down the length of it.

Kyungsoo watched with fascination as a full body shiver rippled through Kai, and his tail puffed up momentarily before he completely relaxed again, turning his head, and smacking his lips before settling down into slumber again.

Kyungsoo laughed under his breath and he reached for his tail a third time, and marveling at how easy Kai’s the tail slipped through his fingers, and how calming the action was. He felt like he could do that all day, just lay there and stroke parts of this hybrid.

Kai started to wake at the end of the third touch, and Kyungsoo heard the boy let out a faintly erotic groan as he rolled over again onto his back, curling his tail under him protectively. Kyungsoo sat back; Kai stretched his arms above his head, and arched his spine off the bed. The human’s breath stopped when he watched those dark nipples harden, how his skin stretched tight over his ribs and abdominal muscles, how his long nails clawed at nothing. Kai’s face was one of ecstasy for a moment, and he let out a second, breathy moan, before he fell back onto the soft mattress. Kyungsoo swallowed thickly, his body growing hot.

Kai opened his eyes blearily, his pupils were round, and his full lips were slightly parted. He rolled over again onto his side before he yawned. It was a complete fantasy of Kyungsoo’s, seeing Kai curled up there on his bed, adorable and shirtless. It was too dangerous.

“Good morning,” Kai murmured, his eyes thankfully slipping shut again. Kyungsoo greeted him back before getting up and hurriedly tip toeing into the bathroom before Kai could see, and be traumatized by, Kyungsoo’s early morning problem.

 

~

 

The next morning, Kyungsoo awoke to the sound of knocking on his bedroom door. Kyungsoo sat up and immediately noticed the blonde cat lying next to him. Kai had crept in again while Kyungsoo was asleep, wearing full pajamas, and was snoozing peacefully atop the blankets.

Two nights in a row that Kyungsoo had woken up with Kai.

“Umm… Kyungsoo?” Baekhyun asked, peeking his head in through the door, a hand over his eyes.

“Baekhyun?” Kyungsoo asked groggily, “It’s okay, come in,” he said. Baekhyun removed his hand from his face, and Kai rolled over, still fully clothed, to lie on his stomach. Baekhyun’s eyes flicked back and forth between the two before settling back on Kyungsoo, his ears went back shamefully.

“I was up early, and I tried to make breakfast…” he trailed off, “and I think I broke your coffee maker.” Kai’s ears flicked, and he lifted his head to see Kyungsoo’s reaction.

Kyungsoo snorted with laughter after a moment and fell back onto his pillows again.

“ _Man_ , Baek. Guess we have to start a list started for Chanyeol,” Kyungsoo couldn’t help but laugh and joke about it, and Baekhyun whined.

“I’m sorry…” from the door, “I’ll buy you a new one,” the Havana promised. Kyungsoo rolled out of bed to assess the damage, walking to the kitchen shirtless. Kai wandered out after them.

Breakfast had been prepared just fine. The scrambled eggs were only slightly overcooked, but the toast with peanut butter and sliced banana on it looked picture perfect. Kyungsoo grabbed a piece of toast and began to munch on it while we went over to the coffee maker. Before he even touched it, he could smell the burnt beans.

Baekhyun had indeed broken it. He put the coffee grinds and the water in the wrong chambers, and he didn’t even include a filter. The coffee particles had burnt and gummed up the inside of the machine. Kyungsoo sighed, and looked at the clock. He didn’t really have the time to stop by the coffee shop down the street, he had to open the shelter in twenty minutes. He would have to settle for bland, breakroom coffee with no additives.

“I’m sorry…” the Havana mumbled again, and Kyungsoo reached up to ruffle his hair and ears for a second.

“It’s okay. Thank you for breakfast,” Kyungsoo murmured as he continued to eat the piece of toast, and went to get dressed. Kai and Baekhyun were very quiet as Kyungsoo got ready for work.

Kai liked watching Kyungsoo take his first sip of coffee in the morning. It was a part of Kyungsoo’s routine, and it made Kyungsoo’s eyebrows relax, and he usually let out a satisfied hum when the coffee tasted just right.

Feeling off balance without his usual dose of caffeine, Kyungsoo came into work groggy with Sehun and another female co-worker.

This morning was hectic, because it was the end of the month, and that meant transfer day, when they cycle through hybrids and relocate some of them from one shelter to the next. Half of the hybrids at the Seoul branch were being traded for the ones at the Incheon branch today, and Kyungsoo had to be there to oversee and check in all the new hybrids, before checking out all the old ones before they began their ride to the other shelter. Kyungsoo likes the variety, but transfer day is always a chaotic one, and Kyungsoo didn’t even have the time to even start a coffee pot in the break room.

An hour and a half into the craziness, Sehun called Kyungsoo into reception, and a female worker came to take over Kyungsoo’s job weighing their new arrivals and taking down their measurements.

Kyungsoo went up to the front and was immediately greeted by Sehun and Joonmyun. Sehun was grinning like a Cheshire cat, and Joonmyun looked just as pleased. Kyungsoo’s eyebrows furrowed at the unexpected looks, and Joonmyun pointed to the door. Kyungsoo looked and did a double take.

Baekhyun and Kai were both here, at the shelter, wearing jeans, jackets, and grins.

Kyungsoo looked down at the two cups of coffee in Kai’s hands and Kyungsoo’s face broke into one of surprise and happiness.

“What are you two doing here?” he exclaimed, “Did you _walk_ here?” he added.

“ _No_ , we took the bus!” Baekhyun chirped, “We knew you’d freak out if you knew we were crossing streets by ourselves.”

“It was my first time on a bus!” Kai quipped, and handed Kyungsoo a hot cup with a cardboard sleeve over it, “We went to the coffee shop down the street, and decided to bring you coffee since _someone_ broke your coffee maker this morning,” Kai said with a teasing grin, and Baekhyun’s ears flicked with annoyance.

“Kyungsoo didn’t make a big deal of it,” Baekhyun whined, and Kyungsoo took the warm cup from his hybrid and took a sip. He moaned a little into the cup as he took three big gulps. During the ride over here, the coffee had cooled to the perfect drinking temperature.

“How did you pay for this?” he asked. Baekhyun jumped in.

“ _I_ did,” he said, “Chanyeol gave me some spending money for the weekend.”

“—But it was _my_ idea,” Kai added, and took a sip of his steamed milk. Kyungsoo set the cup of coffee on the reception desk and reached up to pet both sets of ears.

“Thank you, boys,” Kyungsoo said, “I’m not taking my lunch break for another couple hours, or else I would drive you both home.”

“Don’t worry, we can take a bus back,” Baekhyun said, “Kai just needed to make _sure_ you got your coffee today,” he added in a teasing voice and Kai’s ears flicked backwards in annoyance for a second before he whirled around to face the humans.

“Wait,” Kai said to Baekhyun before turning to Sehun and Joonmyun. Kai bowed to Joonmyun.

“I’m sorry I bit your hand when I first arrived here,” Kai said, looking at Joonmyun specifically, and straightened himself up again, “I wasn’t very trusting of people until just recently,” he added and looked down at Kyungsoo, who looked up at Kai with pride filled eyes. Kyungsoo was shocked too; he hadn’t prompted Kai to apologize at all, and was amazed when Kai took the initiative on his own.

“Oh,” Joonmyun balked, “I-It’s okay. I’m all good now,” he said as he raised his hand, which had healed weeks ago.

 Kai grinned toothily, and bowed again before throwing his arms around Kyungsoo for a quick hug. The tag on his collar jingling on his wrist.

“Bye!” Kai meowed, “See you at home!” he added before the two cats retreated out the door again, and Kyungsoo turned around, feeling overwhelmed with happiness as he picked up the cup of coffee again and took a sip.

“I almost didn’t recognize him when he walked through the door,” Sehun said, “He didn’t even hiss once. Are you _sure_ he’s the same cat?” the youngest added teasingly. Kyungsoo laughed.

“In the words of Yixing, ‘he’s made a complete one-eighty’,” Kyungsoo said.

“He _loves_ you,” Joonmyun teased lightly, and Kyungsoo choked on his coffee, and turned to leave the reception area quickly, Sehun and Joonmyun cackling in his wake.

“Get back to work!” he yelled at them both, his ears red.

 

~

 

That night when Kyungsoo got off work, he went and picked up take out for dinner, not feeling like cooking. When he got upstairs to his apartment, he had gotten off his shoes and made it halfway down the hall to the kitchen when Kai and Baekhyun came running out of the backrooms, socks sliding on the wooden floors.

“Kyungsoo!!” Kai greeted, his face alight, “Baekhyun knows my brother!!”

Kyungsoo turned to the two cats, plastic bags of food still in his hands.

“What?” Kyungsoo asked, not sure if he heard right. Baekhyun pulled a piece of paper out from behind his back.

“Also, Baekhyun ruined the picture…” Kai added as Kyungsoo set the food down on the counter and looked at what Baekhyun had in his hand.

It was one of the images Kyungsoo had snapped of Kai a few weeks ago, he was laughing and his eyes held the spark of playfulness in them but his ears, hair, and eyes had been haphazardly colored in with black sharpie. Kyungsoo stared down at the photo while Baekhyun and Kai chattered.

“I spotted it while we were playing—“

“—Baekhyun ran into the office.” Kai interrupted.

“—And I saw this on the wall,” Baekhyun said, “When I first met Kai, I thought he smelled familiar, but then I just shook it off because there’s no _way_ the two of us had ever met before. And then the other night at dinner, Kai mentioned he had a brother named Jongin,” Baekhyun said and Kyungsoo took the picture from him, “And that really struck me, because I knew Kai was very familiar from _somewhere_ , and I knew the name Jongin from somewhere too, and then I saw this picture, and I couldn’t help myself.”

“ _That’s_ what Jongin looks like?” Kyungsoo asked in disbelief, “…you didn’t mention you were _twins_ ,” he balked as he looked at Kai. His mind reeled. Kai nodded enthusiastically.

“My brother!” he cheered, unable to contain his excitement.

“I didn’t even know twin hybrids could exist…” Kyungsoo mused under his breath.

“I knew Jongin before I knew Kai, and that’s why he smelled so familiar,” Baekhyun said, “We were friends before Chanyeol adopted me from the rescue, but that was almost four years ago… and I can’t remember the name of the shelter.”

“Maybe Chanyeol does?” Kyungsoo added, and Kai’s ears snapped up, “I’ll ask him when he gets back.”

“Can’t you call him now?” Kai whined, Kyungsoo saw the look of excitement and need in Kai’s eyes and although he wanted to, Kyungsoo shook his head no.

“Chanyeol is at a wedding with his family in another country. It’d be rude to call, and I’m not going to pay for a phone call from here to America,” Kyungsoo said, “Chanyeol will be home in a couple days, and we’ll ask him when he gets here,” Kyungsoo said and Kai’s ears drooped, “ _Hey_ ,” Kyungsoo started again, and put his hand on Kai’s shoulder, “This is _good news_. I didn’t think we were going to be able to look for Jongin until after we found your identification number and papers,” Kyungsoo said, “But now we have a good lead. Once Chanyeol gets back, I can start by calling that shelter and see if Jongin is still there,” Kyungsoo said, “And if he’s not there…” Kai’s eyes widened with fear, “Then we’ll keep looking —in every shelter in Korea— until we find him.”

Kyungsoo didn’t mention the fact that because Jongin was in a shelter meant he wasn’t with their grandfather anymore, but he didn’t want to put that thought into Kai’s head. He kept that to himself as he looked down at the crude re-coloring of Kai’s hair and ears, and wondered what Jongin was like.

 

~

 

The next day was Saturday, and Kyungsoo’s only day off this weekend.

His only request from Baekhyun and Kai was that they let him sleep in the next day, and sleep in he did. Kyungsoo woke up usually around 7AM to be at the shelter, and when he woke up at that time, Kyungsoo immediately rolled over and shut his eyes again.

When he finally awoke later that morning, he opened his eyes to find Kai hovering over him, and looking down at him with amused hazel eyes. Kyungsoo’s voice was gravely when he spoke.

“Good morning,” Kyungsoo smiled sleepily up at the attractive creature lounging across his bed, Kai smiled down with amusement.

“It’s almost _noon_ , Kyungsoo,” Kai laughed, “Baekhyun and I made breakfast for ourselves a while ago. There’s more left if you’re hungry for it,” Kai offered. Kyungsoo reached up and put a hand over his eyes and face.

“Is it really almost noon?” Kyungsoo asked and turned his head to look at the clock. 11:30am, “Did you stay in bed with me all this time?” Kyungsoo asked, looking at Kai’s pajamas. The white hybrid’s ears flicked back, but his smile remained, his cheeks even pinkened.

“I got up to eat, but…” Kai whispered, “…yeah,” he answered. Kyungsoo smiled very wide and he shut his eyes again, “Baekhyun’s taking a nap too, so…” Kai added. Kyungsoo opened his eyes to peek at the beautiful white cat, before he lifted his blankets.

 “Come here,” Kyungsoo whispered. Kai looked hesitant for a second, before he moved and slid himself down beneath the blankets, his bell jingling with the action.

Kyungsoo sighed contentedly as he took Kai fully into his arms. Kyungsoo was a perfect human heater under the blankets, and Kai almost immediately started purring when he felt that warmth surround him.

Kyungsoo’s smile never faded from his lips as he pulled Kai down into the blankets. He curled one arm under Kai’s head, and the other around his middle to his back. Kai had one arm tucked up between them, and the other around Kyungsoo’s shoulder.

They lay face to face, and Kai once again felt himself swooning with the smell of Do Kyungsoo.

Kyungsoo shut his eyes to bask in this moment as Kai embraced him back and the human was able to hold his hybrid completely.

His exotically _beautiful_ hybrid, tangled up all over him in his bed, not even for sexual purposes, just to be close, was all Kyungsoo ever wanted. He wanted to fall back asleep like this, wanted to waste the entire day away in favor of cuddling with Kai, until Kai started to speak.

“The smell of your room used to scare me,” the blonde whispered, “but after this weekend, it’s going to be hard for me to go back to my own bed…because now your smell makes me so happy,” the hybrid admitted.

“You don’t have to go back to your own bed if you don’t want to,” Kyungsoo murmured low, and opened his eyes to look into Kai’s face, “I keep my bedroom door open at night for you… in case you ever wanted company.”

Those hazel eyes glimmered, and his cheeks blushed just a little.

“You want me to sleep here with you?” Kai asked, “Every night?”

“It would be a dream come true,” Kyungsoo admitted under his breath, so only Kai could hear him, and pulled forward to plant a soft kiss in the middle of the hybrid’s forehead. Kai shut his eyes and he let his arms relax ever more.

“You are so soft,” Kai whispered, like he was telling a secret, “You’re the first person to ever kiss me here,” Kai whispered, and his hand went up to brush his forehead, pushing his blond hair out of his face a little. It was intimate, and Kyungsoo let one hand slide lower on Kai’s back, before he moved in close and pressed another kiss to Kai’s brow.

“Have you ever been kissed before?” the human asked tentatively. Kai let out a soft sigh at the touch, and nodded.

“My…my second master kissed me often, but he always tasted like tobacco…” Kai answered honestly, “I don’t think my third master kissed me ever…he wasn’t soft like that.”

“Was he soft…ever?” Kyungsoo asked, wondering if it was crossing a line to ask. Kai’s face darkened and he looked down at Kyungsoo’s chest.

“Rarely was he kind,” Kai whispered, “There were a few times… during my heats he was giving. But no, he never kissed me.”

Kyungsoo decided that was enough sad talk for the day and that he needed to take special care of his cat-boy. He moved forward and nuzzled his nose against Kai’s in an Eskimo kiss. Kai’s nose scrunched up cutely, and Kyungsoo kissed the tip of the hybrid’s wrinkled nose.

The kisses continued, Kyungsoo peppered Kai’s face with his lips until Kai was giggling and pushing Kyungsoo away playfully. Kyungsoo pulled back after a moment, having kissed every inch of skin but Kai’s lips.

Once Kyungsoo stopped tickling him, Kai pulled in closer again and rested his forehead against Kyungsoo’s.

“Let me show you how soft I can be,” Kyungsoo breathed, his chocolate eyes looking into gold. Kai nodded silently against Kyungsoo’s forehead, and Kyungsoo’s eyes slipped close as he closed the distance between them.

Their first kiss was purposefully slow.

Kai’s was shy at first, not knowing what to do with his hands, but within a minute, it became more natural. They found their rhythm, and Kai put his hand on Kyungsoo’s cheek to pull him closer. Their mouths moved luxuriously against one another, breaths taken in between. Kyungsoo’s hands were softly massaging Kai’s head and back. Kai’s breathing became shallower, both of their hearts were pounding.

After a minute, Kai put pressure on Kyungsoo’s chest, and Kyungsoo leaned back, reeling himself in.

“Are you okay?” Kyungsoo asked, looking into Kai’s face. The hybrid nodded, his face was blushed, his lips were wet, and his eyes were round, but his eyebrows were drawn up like something was bothering him.

“Is something wrong?” Kyungsoo asked. Kai shook his head, but his snowy ears went back, “Kai, you can tell me anything,” Kyungsoo wilted back into the pillows, and stroked Kai’s shoulder, “If I’m doing something to make you uncomfortable, I want to know, so I can change it.”

Kai shook his head again and buried his head forward into Kyungsoo’s chest, hiding. Kyungsoo moved his arm from under Kai’s head a little, getting feeling back in it, and cradled the boy closer. The human threaded his fingers into the hybrid’s blond hair, and Kyungsoo felt Kai’s shoulders expand as the cat smelled him deeply.

Kyungsoo closed his eyes and relaxed, after a long moment, Kai arched himself in Kyungsoo’s arms, and raised his head up again.

This time, it was Kai who kissed Kyungsoo.

Kyungsoo was so wrapped up in the warmth, and the affection, and the _kiss_ …that he hadn’t realized that Kai was purring until he stopped, and pulled himself away again.

Kyungsoo opened his eyes to find Kai squeezing his eyes shut, like he was holding himself back. Kyungsoo realized what was wrong, and he let his arms relax and he kissed Kai’s cheek again.

“Good boy, Kai,” Kyungsoo whispered, and Kai’s eyes shot open to look at him again, “You don’t have to be afraid. I want to hear you when you purr,” Kyungsoo whispered, “I swear, I’ll never hurt you.”

Kai swallowed, and nodded.

“I know you won’t,” he murmured against Kyungsoo’s lips, “You’re too soft to hurt anyone,” he whispered. Kyungsoo pulled Kai back to his lips again, and within moments, Kai’s whole body was vibrating against the human’s. Kyungsoo’s heart melted.

 

~

 

The next day Chanyeol returned to Seoul.

Baekhyun had his bag packed and by the kitchen entrance by noon. Later that evening, there was a loud knock on the front door of the apartment, and Baekhyun was halfway to the front door before Kyungsoo even looked up.

“Chanyeol!” Baekhyun cried and Chanyeol stepped inside the apartment, in his hand were a couple gift bags. With his free hand he pulled the Havana brown into a one-armed embrace and kissed the boy’s cheek and lips affectionately. Kyungsoo padded down the hallway to greet his friend.

“Did he break anything?” Chanyeol asked, first thing. Kyungsoo laughed.

“Just my coffee maker.”

“ _Really_ , Baekhyun?” Chanyeol asked, but he blew right over it, when he kissed Baekhyun again, in front of Kyungsoo and Kai, who was peeking from down the hallway.

“How was the wedding?” Kyungsoo asked.

 “It was _beautiful_. My sister was gorgeous, and now she and her husband are off to cruise around the Caribbean,” he said, and held up the gift bags, “I brought you each a little something.”

For Kyungsoo, it was a funky tie (totally Chanyeol’s taste) with pineapples on it. For Kai, it was a cell phone charm, with a little white Lucky Cat on it, and Kai’s tail twitched in delight at the adorable trinket, and even though he didn’t have a cellphone.

“Do you have a gift for _meeee_?” Baekhyun crooned, his tail thrashing with excitment. Chanyeol grinned down at Baekhyun.

“Oh, I got you something,” he teased back suggestively, “It’s upstairs in my luggage. Go get your bags, so we can go home and you can unwrap it,” Baekhyun grinned knowingly and laughed as he skittered past Kyungsoo to grab his duffle.

“Hey, quick question…” Kyungsoo spoke as Baekhyun pushed past him with his things, “What was the name of the shelter you adopted Baekhyun from?”

“Oh? Uhh…” Chanyeol stopped and thought about it, “Some place in Busan…I have the information upstairs,” Baekhyun was already half out the front door, and he had a hand on Chanyeol’s sleeve, impatiently tugging his human away, “Can I get back to you with that info tomorrow?”

“Sure,” Kyungsoo said, and Chanyeol and Baekhyun left, laughing, and shutting the door. Kyungsoo locked the front door and turned to Kai. Kai’s ears were not as tall as they could be.

“We just have to wait a little longer,” Kyungsoo soothed, and gave Kai a reassuring smile. They hybrid said nothing, his ears fell all the way back, and he opened his arms for Kyungsoo to hug him.

The human couldn’t help but accept and he came forward to hug the hybrid, who buried his head in Kyungsoo’s shoulder, seeking comfort.


	7. Not the Best Surprise

 

Chanyeol didn’t get back to him until a couple days later.

The Busan Hybrid House. That’s where Chanyeol adopted Baekhyun from three years ago. Kyungsoo reminded Kai that while he was still going to call, the likeliness of Jongin still being there was very low.

Kyungsoo googled their number, and called. The woman he spoke to was perplexed that Kyungsoo was trying to find a common black with nothing but his name to go by, but it was worth a shot.

The woman said that their kennel transfers hybrids every month, and that hybrids don’t stay with them for longer than six months. She gave Kyungsoo the number of three other rescues in Korea, including his own rescue, where their shelter transfers to and from, and Kyungsoo thanked her and hung up.

A string of phone calls was made with nothing to show for it.

The shelters either didn’t keep their files for longer than a year, or they didn’t keep files at all. He kept getting directed to other shelters and rescues, who might have had Jongin.

Almost every one of the numbers Kyungsoo called suggested that he try looking in the Exotic Hybrid Rescue. Kyungsoo hung up with a dry laugh and a curt ‘Thank you. Good bye’.

It was getting late, and he had got a few other phone numbers to try again tomorrow, but it was getting too late in the evening to call businesses, and he had to call it a night at some point.

Kai stood at the door to the office as Kyungsoo set down his phone and sighed. The human ran his hand through his black hair in frustration as he crossed another failed phone number off the list.

 

~

 

The next morning at work, mail had arrived for Kyungsoo regarding Kai. Two of the letters were from the hybrid labs in China and Korea.

 The first letter was from Beijing, and it arrived in a small white envelope. Every one of China’s lab tests had come back negative; Kai’s DNA did not match any of the male white cats from their records. Kyungsoo threw the letter away.

But the parcel he got from the Korean labs was much more promising.

It was a larger, manila envelope with lots of papers inside. Kyungsoo almost wanted to wait until he got home to open it with Kai, but his curiosity got the better of him, and he opened it while at his desk at work. Kyungsoo held his breath as he slipped the neat stack of documents out from the folder.

The first one, right on top, was a handwritten note, on a leaf of paper.

_Dear Do Kyungsoo,_

_We are so happy to hear that the Kai and Jongin case was taken care of. Their story has been plaguing some of us for years now. To hear that Kai has been found, and is receiving love and health care, relieves the hearts of those who raised the boys from creation, incubation, and infancy. Some of us were heartbroken to hear of the events that happened a decade ago. We are grateful to Do Kyungsoo, and the Exotic Hybrid Rescue, for the recovery and rehabilitation of the feline Kai. To show our thanks, we on behalf of the South Korean Genetic Modification Center, wish to donate the hybrid Kai to the Exotic Hybrid Rescue. A microchip is being mailed to the office of Zhang Yixing for immediate implantation. Enclosed is all of the hybrid’s documentation. The files in the back must be filled out upon the surgery of the microchip implantation, and sent back to the South Korean Genetic Modification Center. We thank all that helped bring this story to happy ending._

There were about ten different signatures on the bottom of the page, signed in ink. Kyungsoo could tell it was doctors’ signatures because of how he could not make out one name from the list.

Kyungsoo set the note down on the table, and looked down at the spreadsheet at the top of the stack. The spreadsheet had more than fifty test results, and all were negative except for one, its line highlighted in yellow.

Kyungsoo heart leapt, and set down the spread sheet and leafed through the rest of the paperwork.

“…I can’t believe it,” Kyungsoo whispered.

They had sent him copies of _everything_. Kai’s pedigree papers, his certificate of health, and his full identification papers; Overwhelmed with curiosity, he peeked at Kai’s lineage, and his jaw dropped.

Pure white Turkish Angora; His rarity was in the top half percent of all the hybrid population, and he was worth twice as much as Kyungsoo originally estimated.

Kyungsoo’s head was spinning.

If Kai hadn’t been donated, there was no way Kyungsoo could have been able to afford his registration. Kai was one of the most expensive pets in the entire world. He realized then that he would be able to keep his promise, and he would be able to keep Kai after all of this was said and done. His mouth remembered this sweet kisses from just a couple days ago, and he went back to Kai’s registration file.

Birthdate - January 14th, 2018. Serial number 2C-0030.

Kai was twenty years old, and his birthday was just two days after Kyungsoo’s. He tried not to think of that as fate, but the human couldn’t help his smile from growing wider and wider.

Unfortunately, none of the paperwork included anything about Jongin. But there was a name at the bottom of Kai’s registration paper, a signature, in the spot where the person who adopted the hybrid would sign.

“Lee Sooman…” Kyungsoo murmured out loud as he read the name. Immediately, Kyungsoo googled the name. A lot of hits came up, but then he added the word ‘hybrid’ to the search bar.

An article and an image from just over eleven years ago came up, and Kyungsoo’s breath got stuck in his throat as he saw the picture.

Two identical hybrid children, one blonde and white, one brunette and black, standing hand in hand in front of an old Korean man in a wheelchair, on the front porch of a house. Both boys were grinning identical smiles, and the man looked pretty happy in the image too.

Kyungsoo read the title: Multimillion Won Hybrid Gone Missing.

It was heartbreaking and Kyungsoo remembered hearing about this story when he was in high school. Rich guy with two expensive hybrids had one of them go missing. The investigators who took on the case couldn’t find any traces of a kidnapping, and they ruled it as a runaway story, and the case was dropped. The hybrid went missing in 2026, and the man kept looking for his missing pet until his death in 2034, four years ago.

Kyungsoo took all of the files and slipped them back inside the manila envelope. He sat there in a daze for a moment, before he took his hand off the desk and reached into his left pocket. He had brought the list with the last few numbers on it. He stared down at it for a second, before he picked up his cell phone and dialed the first number.

The first one was a disconnected number, and Kyungsoo crossed it off the list angrily, before he tried the second one.

The person there put him on hold while he went to check their records, and Kyungsoo sat listening to elevator music for almost ten minutes before the person came back on the line to tell him he could not find any cat named Jongin. The woman told Kyungsoo to try the Exotic Hybrid Shelter, and Kyungsoo hung up the phone. Frustrated, and out of options, Kyungsoo ran a search through his own computer system— for the hell of it.

When he typed in the name Jongin, a good handful of cats showed up, Kyungsoo didn’t think he was going to find him as he scrolled down the pictures, thinking this was fruitless, but when Kyungsoo laid eyes of him, he knew it immediately.

He had Kai’s exact face, but with brown eyes, and dark features. He couldn’t believe Jongin had been through Kyungsoo’s shelter before, never the Seoul location, but Kyungsoo couldn’t believe it all the same. All the information was in front of Kyungsoo’s face the whole time— just a few keystrokes away.

Jongin. Fancy Breed: Turkish Angora – Black. Birthdate - January 14th, 2018. Serial number 2C-0031. Busan - Transferred.

Jongin had lived at the Busan branch of the Exotic Hybrid Shelter in 2034, after their grandfather had passed. The transfer files claimed that Jongin had come from the Busan Hybrid House, and then was transferred again after six months to a place called Wu’s Foster Home for Hybrids.

Kyungsoo felt breathless. He googled Wu’s Foster Home, and a picture of a cute house appeared on the top of the page, with a ton of black and brown cats out front, and one tall blonde human.

Kyungsoo didn’t hesitate to call the number. After three rings, a happy voice picked up.

“Hello! Wu’s Foster Home for Hybrids,” chirped the voice, “This is Tao. How can I help you?”

“Hi, um, my name is Do Kyungsoo, I own a hybrid shelter in Seoul, and I’m calling because I’m looking for a specific cat…” he started lamely.

“There are only Havanas and common blacks here,” said the voice slowly, like it was also a well-practiced line. Kyungsoo briefly wondered if he was talking to a hybrid, “If you’re looking for a tabby or something fancy, you should try—”

“No, that’s fine, I’m actually looking for a common black,” Kyungsoo interrupted, “His name is Jongin, his original owner was a man named Lee Sooman who died four year ago,” Kyungsoo explained, “His birthday is on January 14th, and his serial number is 2C-0031, I have his brother in my custody, and…” Kyungsoo felt jittery, he didn’t know how to collect his words. After a silent moment, the voice spoke again.

“Hold on—” he murmured, the he yelled “—Kris!” away from the receiver. After a moment, and a muffled conversation, a different voice picked up the phone.

“Wu’s Home for Hybrids,” spoke the voice man’s voice professionally, “This is Wu.”

Kyungsoo repeated what he had explained to Tao, but in a more professional tone.

“Hello, my name is Do Kyungsoo. I’m the owner of the Exotic Hybrid Rescue,” he started, “For the past three months, I’ve been fostering this hybrid at my house who was severely abused, he is a white, Turkish Angora, named Kai. He told me he had a brother named Jongin, and for the past week, I’ve been trying to hunt this cat’s brother down. He’s a black Turkish Angora, his serial number is 2C-0031, he was born on January 14th…” Kyungsoo puffed, laying out all the information he could, “I’m just trying to reunite a lost cat with his only living family. I’ve called all manner of shelters, and my research claims that Jongin came to your hybrid house about two or three years ago. Is there any way you know where he is now?” Kyungsoo asked.

“Do Kyungsoo, I’ve heard of you, I’ve visited your Busan shelter before,” the voice spoke, “Normally, I don’t give out my hybrids’ information when someone calls like this, but you’re not just some random person, and I _do_ have a black Angora named Jongin,” said the voice, and Kyungsoo sat up straight.

“You _do_?” he asked again.

 “Jongin is a long-term foster of mine, he’s been living with me for a few years now, yeah,” Wu said, “He talks about finding his brother all the time.”

Kyungsoo’s voice almost got caught in his throat.

“The brother is named Kai,” Kyungsoo said, “He was abandoned at my shelter in Seoul, and for the last two and a half months he’s been under my care. I’ve sort of adopted him.”

“May I ask, is he… is Kai a _white_ cat?” Wu asked.

“Yes, he is!” Kyungsoo almost shouted, his eyes alight.

“I think you and I might have two halves of a puzzle,” Wu said.

“His serial number…” Kyungsoo murmured, then spoke louder into the phone, “the Jongin I’m looking for has a serial number of—” Kyungsoo halted to find the six digit number again, “2C-0031,” Kyungsoo rang out, “If your Jongin matches that ID number, then we have just solved a ten year old missing persons case.”

“Hold on, give me one moment,” Kris grunted, there was a shuffle of static, and conversation Kyungsoo couldn’t quite catch before Kris’s voice came back to him.

“Two, C, double zero, thirty-one?” Kris asked, and Kyungsoo confirmed it.

“That’s it,” Kyungsoo said, stood up from his desk, too excited to sit right now, “Kai and I can drive down the day after tomorrow.”

“That works for us. Wait til I tell Jongin, he’s going to be ecstatic!” Wu laughed.

“No, wait, don’t tell him!” Kyungsoo said, “Maybe, we could make it a surprise?”

“For both of them?”

“Yeah… _yeah_ , I could manage that,” Kyungsoo breathed out, his mind whirling with possibilities, “I could get the whole thing on camera,” he mused to himself, Kris laughed on the other end again.

“You sound so excited for them! You must care about your cat a lot, Do Kyungsoo,” Mr. Wu chuckled. Kyungsoo looked up at the bulletin board behind his computer and he gazed up at that fond picture of Kai he loved so much.

“Yeah…you could say that Kai has stolen my heart,” Kyungsoo admitted, on the phone to this perfect stranger, “I’m willing to do anything for him…”

There was a lingering silence between the two. Kyungsoo left a little embarrassed, before Kris spoke.

“We can’t wait to meet you both the day after tomorrow,” Kris said.

“Yeah, me neither. Thank you so much!” Kyungsoo said, and they both said their goodbyes and hung up the phone. Kyungsoo stared down at the files and information all in front of him, and he felt the pieces of a puzzle, as Wu had said it, clicking back into place.

 

~

 

Kyungsoo came home from work that night with a giddy smile, a small chocolate cake, and all of Kai’s documentation. His hands were shaking from the excitement and all the good news he had to tell, and the big surprise he had to keep.

“Kai, come here!” Kyungsoo yelled as he entered the house. He took off his shoes, set the box of cake and the mail on the counter, before unloading his wallet, keys, and cell phone into the bowl, “Kai!” he called again.

Kai came out running from the backroom at Kyungsoo’s voice, and Kyungsoo swept Jongin up into a hug when he could. Kai was startled, but he didn’t push Kyungsoo away, when Kyungsoo let the boy land back on his feet, Kai’s tail had puffed up.

“What’s going on?” Kai asked.

Kyungsoo took out the manila envelope and started unloading sheet after sheet of paper.

“Proof of registration. Proof of adoption. Pedigree and lineage. Certificate of Health,” Kyungsoo rang off as he took the papers out and laid them on the counter one by one, “You are a Korean-bred hybrid, made right here in Seoul. You are a white, Turkish Angora, and you are _much_ more rare and fancy than a Maine coon, or a shorthair, and—” Kyungsoo added, seeing the look of silent shock on Kai’s face, “They’re sending a new microchip to Dr. Zhang, once you have a microchip again, all I have to do is fill out the forms and then you’re _mine_ ,” Kyungsoo breathed out, “Actually, _legitimately_ , mine,” Kai looked up at him as he said that, his gold eyes flickering.

“I thought I already was yours?” Kai asked quietly. Kyungsoo smiled fondly up at Kai.

“You are,” Kyungsoo murmured, “You will always be my sweet cat. But after we sign the papers, it will be official. With my information on your registration, no one can take you away from me. You will be mine in the eyes of the state, and the court,” Kyungsoo explained, “I was actually terrified about what this information may have meant…” he admitted, “if things didn’t play out that way that they did, I may not have been able to keep you.”

“ _Why_?” Kai asked seriously, looking up at Kyungsoo, “I have a collar with your name on it.”

“Because…of money,” Kyungsoo said lamely, “I have a good amount of money put away for emergencies and things like that, but if you weren’t donated to my shelter, I wouldn’t have been able to afford your registration. You are an _expensive_ cat, Kai,” Kyungsoo explained, “How your grandfather was able to afford you _and_ Jongin is beyond me.”

Kai looked down at all the papers, his fingers ghosting over them.

“I didn’t realize that me being here was uncertain…” Kai whispered, his ears falling back, “The first day you took me home, you told me you were going to take care of me, and then you bought me all those nice things, and I just assumed…” Kai murmured and he looked down at the black collar on his wrist, “If you couldn’t have kept me, where would I have gone?”

“I don’t know,” Kyungsoo answered, and stepped closer, putting a hand on Kai’s shoulder, “But it doesn’t matter. You’re home,” Kyungsoo affirmed, and Kai’s eyes flickered again at the word.

“ _Home_?” he whispered under his breath.

“Wherever I go, you’re coming too. Now, and for the rest of your life,” Kyungsoo murmured. When Kai looked back at Kyungsoo this time, he had a small grin playing on his lips.

“So, you’re my real master now?” he asked. That word slipping from Kai’s lips made Kyungsoo burn inside.

It was a title that meant a lot of things for Kyungsoo, and made a lot of thoughts rush through his head. To Kai, the word probably held even more weight than that.

“You don’t have to call me that,” Kyungsoo swallowed, “You can call me your owner, or your human…”

“Do you not like it when I call you master?” Kai asked, the word, again, falling from Kai’s mouth made flags of arousal pop up in Kyungsoo’s brain, but he and Kai weren’t ready for that.

“It’s not that,” Kyungsoo said stiffly, quelling his true thoughts over the subject, “the word ‘master’ means a lot of things… I would think, after what you’ve been through, the word would be taboo for you…”

“I like ‘my human’,” Kai answered sheepishly after a moment, “I could definitely start calling you that…”

Kyungsoo wanted to tell Kai what he knew about Jongin, wanted to tell Kai about the trip he didn’t know they were making in two days, but he held his tongue.

“Did you find out anything about Jongin today?” Kai asked, his eyes wide.

And Kyungsoo had to lie.

 

~

 

“Tomorrow, I’m going to Busan for the day,” Kyungsoo finally mentioned when he got home from work the next night. Kai and Kyungsoo were on the couch together, Kai resting his head against Kyungsoo’s chest, they had just finished dinner.

“Why?” Kai asked.

“For work,” he lied, “I’m going to my shelter in Busan tomorrow to oversee some things. I’d like it if you came with me,” Kyungsoo suggested, “We’d take my car, and we’d leave early tomorrow morning. We might stay the night at a hotel, or make the drive back home late in the evening,” Kyungsoo mused as he stroked Kai’s hair, “but I’ll be gone all day, and I don’t want to leave you alone at night if I can’t make it back.”

“Okay,” Kai agreed, “just as long as I don’t have to go inside the shelter.”

“No. No kennels for Kai,” Kyungsoo agreed and kissed the tip of Kai’s left ear. Kai snuggled closer to Kyungsoo, and let out a rare purr, for Kyungsoo’s ears only.

 

~

 

Kyungsoo was vibrating with excitement the next morning as he packed up an overnight bag. Kai was still asleep in Kyungsoo’s bed, so Kyungsoo packed up an outfit for Kai too, in the same bag, and the human grabbed his video camera from his office and put it inside the bag too.

It was just after six in the morning. Kyungsoo came into the bedroom again with a cup of coffee in his hand, and he sat on the bed next to Kai’s sleeping form.

Kai woke, and Kyungsoo kissed him on the forehead, reminding the hybrid of their trip today, and told him to go take a shower before they left. Kyungsoo watched the unknowing hybrid as he stumbled sleepily on his tip toes out of Kyungsoo’s room, his white tail swishing behind him.

Kyungsoo made them both something for breakfast, and by the time he was done cooking, Kai had emerged from the bathroom wearing jeans and a long-sleeved stripped shirt. He had a towel held to his head, and was rubbing his hair and ears vigorously, the bell on his collar jangling.

Kyungsoo realized while he was gazing that he’d have to get one for Jongin too, if he brought the other cat home.

“Almost time to go?” Kai asked, his voice still scratchy from sleep.

“Mm-hm,” Kyungsoo murmured, and he started to dish up two plates, “It’s going to be a five hour drive. You can bring a pillow and nap in the car if you want.”

After they ate, Kyungsoo used the restroom and when he came back out, ready to go, Kai was standing by the entrance to the kitchen with Kyungsoo’s favorite pillow hugged to his frame.

 

~

 

Even though the drive was long, Kai didn’t sleep. He was alert, looking out the windows, gazing at the landscapes and cities of Korea as they drove.

Kyungsoo set up his video camera on the dashboard, and had been recording Kai and him as they drove.

Kyungsoo turned on the radio, and let Kai flip through stations. Kyungsoo pulled on of Chanyeol’s CDs from the glove box that he had never taken out of his car, and played that. Kai was really into Chanyeol’s music, even if it wasn’t Chanyeol singing.

“I thought Chanyeol was a singer?” Kai asked, “All these songs have girls singing.”

“Chanyeol makes music professionally for other people. He also helps people bring together music they’ve already made. He’s a composer,” Kyungsoo explained. Kai made a noise of understanding.

“Ahh, I see,” the hybrid said.

They sat in silence for a while, Kai looking out the window again.

“I forgot that places like these existed,” Kai whispered after a moment, “Trees, and long empty roads. When you’re in captivity like I was… time stops existing…” he paused, “I had forgotten what the real world looked like.”

Kyungsoo let Kai’s words linger around the car, and the human reached over and turned off the music. All that was heard was the hum of the car, and the silence between them.

“If you could speak to Jongin, what would you say to him?” Kyungsoo asked.

Kai tore his gaze from the window to look at Kyungsoo for a second, before he looked away and out the front windshield.

“I have no idea…” Kai said, “probably… I’d tell him I’m sorry, for running away, for leaving. He’s probably so mad at me. His own brother, taking off as a kid, and never coming back…”

“He doesn’t hate you Kai,” Kyungsoo said softly.

“You don’t know that,” Kai whispered, “It’d be nice to think that he missed me like I missed him, but I wouldn’t miss me. I was a brat, and I chose to run away, and to them it was probably like I chose to never come back either.”

“I would never think that of you if I was your brother,” Kyungsoo said, trying to sound comforting, “I would have been worried sick every day you weren’t with me.”

“But you’re not Jongin,” Kai almost spat, “He looked up to me when we were children, and then I abandoned him.”

“You did _not_ abandon him,” Kyungsoo said a little sharply, “You were taken away from him by outside forces. You didn’t choose what happened to you. You didn’t choose to get kidnapped.”

“But he doesn’t know that!” Kai yelled, before falling quiet again. This wasn’t the way Kyungsoo wanted this conversation to go. He tried not to sigh.

“Then when you see Jongin again,” Kyungsoo started, this time quieter, “You should tell him that.”

Kai didn’t answer him, and they fell into silence once more. After a minute, Kyungsoo turned the radio back on.

 

~

 

“What am I going to do when we get to your job?” Kai asked quietly after about ten minutes. Kyungsoo barely heard him, his voice was so soft.

“Oh, uh—” Kyungsoo faltered, “I don’t know, but we’ll figure something out.”

Kai was silent for a couple moments, and Kyungsoo thought he was off the hook for now, but he wasn’t.

“You’ve been acting weird,” Kai stated, his hands were clutching the pillow in his lap, “And it’s not just today either… yesterday you were being kinda weird too,” Kai’s voice was low.

“I-I…” Kyungsoo stuttered.

“We’re not going to Busan for your job, are we?” Kai asked, his voice tight.

Kyungsoo took a deep breath, they were only two hours into the five hour drive, but he didn’t want to lie to Kai anymore.

“No…” Kyungsoo exhaled, “The truth is, two days ago…when your certificates came in the mail…I also found out where Jongin was, and where he has been for the last few years,” Kyungsoo said, and Kai’s ears snapped forward, “We’re not going to my shelter in Busan, we’re on our way to a foster home for cat hybrids, where Jongin has been staying for the last couple years…” Kai was silent, and Kyungsoo continued, “If all goes well…I might purchase Jongin today, and the three of us would go back home to Seoul together, tonight.”

Kai didn’t say anything for a long while, and Kyungsoo didn’t want to take his eyes off the road for too long. When Kyungsoo looked, Kai’s ears were stuck to his head, and he quickly looked away and out the window.

“Kai…” Kyungsoo prodded, “Say something. Are you happy? Are you pissed at me for not telling you?” Kyungsoo’s fear creeping in.

“I can’t…” Kai trailed off, his hands gripped the pillow, he took a deep breath, but then his vision tunneled, “I need out,” he hissed under his breath.

“What?” Kyungsoo asked. Kai’s voice rose with every word.

“ _Out_. I need out. I need _out_ of this _car_ , right _now_!” Kai screamed. He felt caged in. His lungs felt like they were being squeezed and he couldn’t draw in a breath. He felt like there were hands around his neck.

Kyungsoo’s heart leapt into high gear when he realized Kai was having a panic attack.

“Okay. I’ll pull over, right here,” Kyungsoo said as he pulled off the road next to a fence lined field. Kai started to hyper ventilate, and he unstrapped his seatbelt before they even came to a complete stop.

Once Kyungsoo halted the car, Kai’s door was open and the white cat bolted. Kyungsoo called Kai’s name, but that did nothing. The human put the car in park and scrambled out of it. Kai had leapt the fence, and was running away like a streak of white and blonde. Kyungsoo put his hands on his head as he watched the hybrid sprint away from him. What should he do? He couldn’t jump that fence. But what would he do if Kai actually ran away from him?

The chaos in Kyungsoo’s mind quieted when Kai seemed to slow down. There was one lone tree in the clearing on the side of the fence, and Kyungsoo let out a breath of relief when Kai stopped under the shade of the canopy, and squatted down.

Kyungsoo felt relieved, but he also felt his heart break. He had triggered Kai into having an episode. He had made a promise to never hurt this creature, and he foolishly, thoughtlessly, gave him a panic attack. He hadn’t had one of those in over two weeks, and Kyungsoo thought that bringing Kai and Jongin back together again would help Kai, and make him happy, but the surprise element took that all away.

Kyungsoo watched with miserable helplessness as Kai’s small form huddled in a squat on the ground with his hands over his head. He wished he had a bottle of water in the car. He wished he could jump the fence. He wished he had just told Kai the truth from the beginning.

Kyungsoo, not knowing what else to do, went back to his car.  He shut Kai’s door, and closed his own after he got into it. Kyungsoo turned off the video camera, and adjusted his mirror so he could clearly watch Kai from a distance, and he waited.

He knew that Kai needed some alone time, knew the hybrid probably had a million thoughts he needed to sort out; a million thoughts and a thousand different emotions.

So Kyungsoo waited. After fifteen long minutes he was starting to get a little fidgety, but he decided to wait another five before he was going to do something about it.

Right as Kyungsoo was about to get out of the car, Kai stood up. Kyungsoo stilled and watched the boy wipe his face on his sleeves, and run his hands through his hair before he started to walk back towards Kyungsoo and the car.

Kyungsoo breathed out a sigh of relief. Kai walked back to the fence, and Kyungsoo watched Kai scale the chain link quickly, and drop himself over the edge. He rose, his ears down, and the hybrid walked slowly up to the driver’s side door. The human, confused and concerned, opened his door to talk to Kai.

“Are you okay?” Kyungsoo asked. Kai nodded, but his face said differently.

“Can I sit in the backseat?” Kai asked.

“Of course you can,” Kyungsoo said and Kai moved to open the back door. Kai slid inside and strapped in his seat belt again. Kyungsoo offered him the pillow wordlessly. Kai took it and immediately fell on his side to lie across the backseat. He curled his long legs to his chest and wrapped his tail up, so he grasped the tip softly in his hand. Kai, ears still flat back, buried his face in the feather down pillow.

Kyungsoo was unsure of what to say, or what to do next.

“Do you want to go home?” Kyungsoo asked, even though they were almost half way.

“No…” Kai whimpered, and turned his head, “I want…water,” he moaned quietly.

“Alright then, let’s go get you a bottle of water,” Kyungsoo murmured. He turned the car back on, and pulled back onto to the highway.

They drove for the next ten minutes in silence. No music. No talking. Kai had his head down the whole time. After a while his ears came forward again.

Kyungsoo stopped at the next available gas station and purchased sodas and waters for each of them. Kai’s eyes looked grey as they continued on their way, but he was sitting up to drink his water. The human checked on him through the rear view mirror every once in a while, but the white cat kept his eyes staring out the window.

He had finished the water bottle, and had opened the soda, but had only taken a few sips. After a few minutes, Kai finally spoke.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” he asked, his voice much more level than Kyungsoo expected.

“I thought I would make it a surprise but clearly that was the wrong idea. I’m sorry, I didn’t think it would upset you like it did. I just wanted to make you happy.”

“I _am_ happy,” Kai admitted, “And sad, and scared, and nervous, and confused, and my heart is pounding out of my chest and… and— what if he doesn’t want to see me, Kyungsoo?”

“Kai, I _know_ he wants to see you. When I called the foster home two days ago, the owner of the house said that Kai talks about finding you _all_ the time. He’s been looking for you just as long as you’ve been looking for him,” Kyungsoo tried to soothe.

“For years, all I wanted was to see my brother again…but now that we’re almost there, I have no idea what I’ll say to him…” Kai cried, “I feel…” his voice wavered, and Kyungsoo opened the center console of his car to pull out a tissue. He handed it back to Kai, who took sniffed, and took it gratefully.

“How do you feel?” Kyungsoo coaxed quietly.

“I feel _ashamed_ ,” Kai’s voice dropped to a whisper, “I’m not the same child he remembers me being. I’ve done and seen… _terrible_ things. Things I haven’t even told you about,” Kai’s breath was jagged, like he brought the tissue his eyes.  “I’m so… I’m so _fucked up,_ Kyungsoo. And Jongin has no idea…”

Kyungsoo let out a little breath as he kept his eyes on the road.

“You’re not fucked up, Kai,” Kyungsoo said, even though he hated cursing. Kai sobbed.

“But I am!!” the hybrid screeched, “What if I’m nothing like he expects me to be?! What if he meets me and he maybe is happy at first, but then he comes to _hate_ me, because I’m not the same person I was back then? I’m not even the right version of myself! In some world, I grew up in a sheltered, loving home with my brother and my aging grandfather. I had good interactions with people! I probably had lots of friends, and maybe some girlfriends or boyfriends like Baekhyun. Maybe, I even did things like play sports with neighborhood kids, and fell asleep in the same bed as my brother listening to the sounds of bugs outside our window. But that _never_ happened!!” Kai yelled, finally letting it all go.

“I _never_ got to make friends with kids or cats my age. I _never_ got to sleep in a bed,” his voice cracked, “I’ve seen cats being torn alive by dogs. I’ve seen my former master tie another cat down, cut off his tail, and then fuck me on that same bed, the other cat wailing… the most _awful_ wail I’ll ever hear…” Kai said and he gripped his own tail, and for the first time Kyungsoo realized that little action was for protection.

Kyungsoo was horrified into silence, his eyes locked onto the road in front of him. Kai couldn’t stop the floodgates.

“I was taught how to give a blowjob, and how to eat a pussy, before I even hit my first heat,” the white hybrid kept going, “I can’t be outside the house if I’m alone. The idea of sex terrifies me. Any slightly loud noise reminds me of the guns and it all scares the _hell_ out of me… I’m _fucked_ _up_ , Kyungsoo!” Kai sobbed, “And now… and now I have three hours until I see my brother again, and he’s _not_ ready for me. He’s not ready to have to take care of me the way you do. He’s not ready, and he’s going to _hate_ me for coming back into his life.”

Kyungsoo pulled over onto the side of the road again, and put his car in park. Kai whimpered into his hands in the backseat, and Kyungsoo took out the whole packet of tissues and handed it to Kai. The white cat grabbed one and blew his nose. He wiped his eyes, but his mouth was still downturned in an ugly frown, his ears stuck back to his scalp.

“Kai,” Kyungsoo started in a soft tone after a while, “if you’re not ready for this….we can go home. We can try again next week or something…” he murmured. Kai didn’t take his hands away from his face. Kyungsoo continued, “If you see Jongin today, you probably won’t tell him everything about what’s happened to you in the last ten years immediately. Eventually, you’ll tell him about it all, but it will take time. That’s the beauty about having him back in your life again after all this time: you’ll have the rest of your lives together to tell him your story, and to hear his, and to make a new story together...” Kyungsoo pulled from the heart, “You may be a little fragile, Kai… but I don’t think you’re fucked up,” Kyungsoo shook his head, “You’re so much _stronger_ and braver than you think you are. You are a _survivor_. Those people— those _evil_ sons of _bitches_ , who hurt you and raped you for years, do _not_ deserve your tears,” Kyungsoo spoke, his voice sincere, and loving, and filled with sadness, “You deserve to be happy, and to reclaim the family that they stole you from. Jongin is your brother. If he loved you then, he will still love you now.”

Kai let his hands fall from his face. His eyes were pink and the skin blotchy. His nose and eyes were both running.

“I feel like I might be sick,” Kai admitted.

“Let’s get out of the car then,” the human suggested, lightening his tone even more, “get some fresh air.”

Kai nodded once and they both exited the Lexus. Kyungsoo locked the car, and the two started to walk down the road. Kai’s breath became steadier after a minute. The nature smells calmed him down. His ears raised and swiveled around; he heard the birds and the leaves in the trees as they shuddered against one another in the wind. A warm spring air kicked up a sweet smell, and they both stopped to take in that moment. Kai’s eyes closed as he smelled the musky, natural air, mixed with the smells from the old highway road they were walking along.

“I’m sorry,” Kyungsoo murmured again, finally breathing the silence, and Kai’s eyes opened to look at Kyungsoo. Hazel eyes caught brown ones. Kyungsoo looked down at his feet, and kicked at a rock, “I really wish I had told you about Jongin when I found out two days ago. I thought the surprise was going to go over great, this is not what I wanted to happen. I love you, Kai,” Kyungsoo said, his heart thudded in his chest, “I care about you so much. I’m sorry I caused you so much stress today. I’m sorry that I didn’t share what I knew with you when I found out. I’m sorry you, of any hybrid in this _entire_ universe, were the one who had to live through those awful things… If you want to turn around and go back home, I’m okay with that. We can do this another time.”

“…You love me?” Kai whispered, and looked up to meet Kyungsoo’s eyes.

“I do,” Kyungsoo replied.

Kai avoided his gaze, and he looked down the empty, tree lined road between the cities. A car in the distance came closer, and then passed them with a roar.

“I love you too,” Kai finally said, not looking at him. Kyungsoo smiled up at the hybrid sadly.

 “You don’t have to say it just because I said it,” Kyungsoo said, “It’s okay for you to take your time with these things. If you need five minutes, let’s take five minutes. If you need five days, then let’s go home and wait five days,” Kyungsoo said, “I didn’t realize that, by dragging you all the way out here and not telling you where we were going, I was forcing you to confront Jongin and I— of _all_ people— should have known not to back you into a corner like that.”

Kyungsoo stepped back and bowed deeply to Kai, lingering there with his head down for a moment, before he rose again, Kai’s eyes wide with shock.

“I hope you can forgive me for this.”

“I do,” Kai answered, “I do forgive you. And, I’m sorry too. I shouldn’t have yelled, or run away like that, and I know you don’t like it when people curse and I’ve been cursing a lot today…” Kai mumbled. Kyungsoo smiled up at Kai, brighter this time.

“You’re such a sweet cat, Kai,” Kyungsoo murmured.

Another car zoomed past them, and kicked up another gust of wind.

“Do you want to go home, or do you think you’re ready to face Jongin?” Kyungsoo asked again. Kai straightened his shoulder, then sighed.

“I don’t want to go home, yet,” he answered, “We’re already out here…I don’t think I’ll ever be really ready to face Jongin, so I might as well just do it,” the cat said, “I have a headache,” he moaned.

“I have some medication for that in the car,” Kyungsoo said and offered his hand for Kai to take, “Are you hungry? Do you want to stop and get something for lunch?” Kyungsoo asked.

Kai shook his head.

“No, my stomach is in knots,” Kai murmured, “but…we should start driving again.”

 Kai took Kyungsoo’s hand, and the two of them walked back to the car together. Kyungsoo felt horrible, but getting all these things off each other’s chests was needed. The tension that was between them was slowly fading away. When they got back to Kyungsoo’s car, Kai got in the passenger’s seat. He strapped in his seat belt again, and twisted around in his seat to grab Kyungsoo’s pillow from the back.

Once Kai was situated again in his seat by Kyungsoo’s side, he took a deep breath.

“How far away from Jongin are we?” Kai asked, his voice rough.

“About two and a half hours. We’re halfway,” Kyungsoo explained. Kai looked down at his hands in his lap before he sniffed and lifted his head.

“Alright,” he nodded, “let’s go get him.”


	8. Enter Jongin

 

They rode together in comfortable silence. Kyungsoo turned the radio back on, and Kai even drifted off to sleep for a couple minutes near the end of their trip. Kyungsoo’s GPS lead them to the foster home, and they arrived just before noon.

It was a cute brick house with a black roof on a large plot of land, with a white fence around the perimeter. There was a wooden sign in the front yard by the mail box, facing the street, that said ‘Wu’s Foster Home for Hybrids’.

“We’re here,” Kyungsoo said as he put the car in park, and turned off the engine. Kai stared at the house, with its lush green lawn, and bikes out on the front porch. It looked like a family home, “Do you mind if I continue to film you?” Kyungsoo asked, “I wanted to get this on camera. If you want me to leave it here, I will.”

“It doesn’t bother me,” Kai murmured absently.

Kyungsoo took the camera off the dashboard and got out of the car first, and Kai followed, his ears flattened back. Kyungsoo came around the side of the car and took Kai’s hand.

“Ready?” he whispered.

“No,” Kai answered, but followed his human through the front gate anyway. They walked up the worn path, the pavement cracked after many years, but when Kyungsoo started to walk up the steps of the front porch, Kai stopped. Kyungsoo turned to look at him, camera pointed at Kai.

The white hybrid stared at the front door his pupils shrinking into small slits.

“What if it’s the wrong Jongin?” Kai asked, “what if we came all the way here for nothing?”

“Then we’ll go get some lunch, and go home,” Kyungsoo stated calmly, “And we’ll keep looking,” the human said and he knocked on the front door. Kai came forward quickly and stood behind Kyungsoo. A pair of heavy footsteps came to the door, and it opened.

Both Kyungsoo and Kai were shocked when a tall, pure white hybrid opened the door. The two white cats immediately locked eyes. Kyungsoo turned the camera on the new face.

He was taller than both of them, and his hair was lighter than Kai’s. His ears weren’t as tall, and his tail not as fluffy, but his shoulders were broader, and his gold eyes were fiercer. He looked like an otherworldly creature.

“Oh,” said the cat in the doorway, his gold eyes twinkling, “What a trip,” he murmured, “you really do look just like Jongin.”

Kai’s ears stood up tall.

“He’s here?” Kai asked, breathless, “Jongin is really here?”

“Yeah, he’s in the back somewhere,” the cat said and he opened the door wide, “please, come in. We’ve been dying to meet you for days now,” Kai came around Kyungsoo to step inside first.

“I thought there were only common blacks and Havanas here,” Kyungsoo asked as he followed Kai into the house.

“I’m not a foster. I have a master, I’m just not wearing my collar,” he said, his voice sounded odd, like Korean wasn’t his first language, “I’m Tao,” he said. Kyungsoo reached forward to take his hand.

“I’m Kyungsoo, we spoke on the phone. This is Kai,” Kyungsoo said to the tall cat, and he panned the camera around the front room. There were a couple black cats in the front room, looking at them curiously. There were mismatched couches, and toys on the floor, and curious hybrids.

“Where is he?” Kai asked again. Tao looked over his shoulder to a hallway.

“He’s somewhere around here,” he said absently.

“Can we go look around?” Kyungsoo asked.

“Please, be our guests,” Tao said, “I’ll go get Kris,” the second Tao turned to walk away, Kai was creeping into the house his nose going wild. Kyungsoo followed him with the camera.

“Jongin?” Kai called, his voice weak and uncertain as he started down the hall. The first door he came to, he knocked, then let himself in. There were bunk beds on every wall of the bedroom. There were a few hybrids napping, a couple of them sleeping with each other on a bottom bunk.

Every time Kai opened a door, every pair of dark eyes turned their attention to him. Kai’s voice was getting shriller.

“Jongin?” he called as he opened door after door.

Kyungsoo was enraptured by the amount of bunk beds in the house, and all the mismatched furniture, and the clothes and toys all over the ground. It felt more like a fraternity house than a foster home.

“Jongin!” Kai called loudly as he opened a third door, the cats in the previous rooms had poked their heads out to smell and to see. Kyungsoo could hear their whispering.

Kai knocked and opened the next door to find a bathroom, he immediately shut the door and was about to go to the last door in the hall way. Before he could open it, it was ripped open from the inside. Both cats froze as they locked eyes, and Kyungsoo held his camera up to capture this moment.

Wide brown eyes gazed deeply into gold.

Two pairs of pouty lips.

Identical noses.

Twin brothers, symmetrical in every way but in color.

To Kyungsoo, Jongin looked younger than Kai. His eyes had bags under them, but his face was glittering with life, and excitement. Maybe to Kyungsoo, Kai seemed older because of the life he had experienced.

Jongin drew in a breath.

“I can’t believe it,” he whispered, and then his face broke into the most gleeful smile, “I can’t _believe_ it!” he yelled loudly and took Kai’s hands in his.

Jongin started to smell Kai’s hands, then up his wrists. Jongin’s black tail was whipping back and forth.

“Oh my god,” he hissed into Kai’s sleeve and he looked up at his brother, his eyes going wet, “You’re _here_!” he cried.

“I’m here,” Kai whispered back.

“You’re really _here_!” he laughed, and Jongin sprang forward to envelope Kai in a hug.

Kyungsoo saw Kai’s tail puff up, but then relax again as he buried his head in Jongin’s shoulder, his white ears flattening backward.

“Jongin!” Kai whimpered into his shoulder as he inhaled the smell of his childhood and his dear brother.

“You smell different now,” Jongin whispered as he pressed his nose into Kai’s shoulder, and then into his blonde hair.

“You smell _exactly_ the same,” Kai murmured, “Oh my god, how I’ve longed to smell you again,” Kai pulled away from Jongin, to touch his brother’s face, “I missed you every day,” Kai’s voice cracked.

Jongin’s eyes changed and he reached up to touch Kai’s face too.

“Do you know how long it’s been?” Jongin asked.

“A l-long time,” Kai’s voice shuddered, “ten years?” he asked. Jongin swallowed and shook his head.

“Eleven years, four months, and twelve days,” Jongin stated. Kai’s ears slowly came to droop, and Kyungsoo looked up at the black cat over the camera.

“Eleven years?” Kai whispered.

“I kept count of every day that you were gone,” Jongin answered, and Kyungsoo’s heart swelled for the two of them, “it’s been exactly…” Jongin took a second, and looked up at the ceiling, counting a few on his fingers, before looking back at his brother, “Four thousand, one hundred, and forty-nine days,” he said, looking directly into Kai’s eyes.

“I didn’t even realize…” Kai whispered, “Time… slipped away from me. I didn’t even know how old we really were until a couple days ago, when we found all of my paperwork…I didn’t even know I was coming to find you until today,” Kai spoke, but his words seemed flimsy. Kyungsoo saw Kai’s hands shaking in Jongin’s. Jongin pulled Kai forward for another hug, Jongin’s ears flattening down like Kai’s, and both cats’ faces disappeared into the other’s frame.

“I missed you so much!” Jongin whispered.

“Me too,” Kai managed out, his voice muffled in Jongin’s hair.

Footsteps were heard, and a deep voice told the other cats to make way, and go back to their business. Kyungsoo turned his head, then his camera, onto Wu.

Kyungsoo was surprised to see how tall the human was, and how handsome his face looked. He had thick eyebrows, and a small scowl on his lips, but his eyes looked very compassionate. He towered over all the black and brown cats as they shuffled out of the small hallway again.

“You must be Do Kyungsoo,” Kris said, his voice deep, and he held out a hand for Kyungsoo to shake. Kyungsoo put his hand into Kris’s larger one.

“And you must be Kris Wu,” Kyungsoo said, keeping the camera on Kris, “nice to meet you.”

“Likewise,” Kris said, then turned his attention to the twins, “and it’s very nice to meet the famous Kai, too,” Kris said. Kai and Jongin broke their embrace to look at Kris. Kai’s pupils shrank as he looked up at the monster of a human, but Jongin let go of Kai and bounced over to Kris, throwing his arms around Kris’ middle.

“Kris! Kris!” he chirped, “It’s Kai! It’s _really_ Kai!”

“I know, Jongin-ah. I’ve known for a couple days now. Do Kyungsoo called me two days ago, and said he had Kai, so I told him to come on down,” Kris said and ruffled Jongin’s hair, “Are you surprised?” he asked.

“Surprised?” Jongin scoffed, “I’ve never been so excited in my life!!” the black cat sang and he threw his arms in the air as he jumped out of Kris’ space, and back to Kai’s side, rubbing his check against Kai’s. When their faces touched, Kai’s eyes slid shut and he nuzzled into Jongin’s side.

“Jongin?” Kai murmured, before pulling away, “I want you to meet Kyungsoo,” he said, and turned his attention to his human. Kyungsoo smiled at Jongin when the black cat, so wrapped up in his brother, finally noticed the shorter human with the video camera.

Jongin’s eyes flickered, and his tail whipped around. The black Angora leaned in close to smell Kyungsoo, but Kris put a hand on his shoulder.

“Manners,” he reminded the cat. Jongin pulled back and bowed, before holding out his hand.

“My name is Jongin, it’s nice to meet you,” he said. Kyungsoo smiled and took Jongin’s hand.

“It’s very nice to meet you too, I’ve heard so much about you from Kai,” Kyungsoo said.

“Are you my brother’s master?” Jongin asked. Kyungsoo smiled and nodded.

“We don’t really use that word,” he said stiffly, looking to Kai, and then at Jongin again, “I’m your brother’s human,” he corrected. Jongin looked Kyungsoo up and down once again before he turned back to Kai. Their eyes locked again, and Jongin’s face split into a grin as he took Kai’s hand.

“Why don’t you go show Kai around, hm?” Kris suggested. Jongin’s eyes brightened even more, and he turned to Kai, tugging him by the hand.

“Come on!” the black twin cried, and pulled the white cat after him. The two cats brushed passed the humans, and Kyungsoo trailed after them, with the camera pointed at them the whole time.           

“Where are we going?” Kai asked his brother as they exited the hallways and looped back around through a cluttered kitchen.

“Outside!” Jongin called, “I’m so full of energy! I have to run!” he cried and they burst through the back door of the kitchen. Jongin’s hand never let go of Kai as the two brothers ran out into the backyard, Kai tripping to keep up.

Kyungsoo was amazed at the back of the house; the backyard was truly a little oasis. There was a little koi pond with a tiny waterfall, and a few heavy green trees providing some shade, with stone benches underneath. There was a tall jungle gym made out of wood and plastic for climbing on that was shaped kind of like a pirate ship, with bright colored flags on it. There was a sandbox made of wood, and a set of four swings off to the side too.

It was like a private park in their backyard. Perfect for energetic young hybrids to play tag and run and jump. There were some hybrids outside already, a couple sitting at the top of the jungle gym, and a few younger hybrids playing in the sandbox.

The cats from inside wandered out to watch the brothers reuniting, and the ones already outside had their attention too.

“This is the best day of my life!” Jongin cried as he ran, dragging Kai along. Jongin’s mouth was wide open, laughing and calling Kai’s name. After a minute, Kai relaxed, and let his real smile out too. Kyungsoo taped them from the back patio, as the two of them played and chased.

“I haven’t seen Jongin like this in a long time,” Kris said as he stood half a step behind Kyungsoo.

“Kai is still uncertain,” Kyungsoo said, “but he’ll come around in not too long,” he smiled, “it takes him a while to get comfortable, no matter where he is… but I’m hoping with Jongin in his life, he can find some more ease.”

Sure enough, Kai and Jongin to started to actually play, swiping at each other, pulling on clothing, and tugging tails. Kyungsoo gasped when Jongin tackled Kai, and the two went down on the grass hard. They rolled on the ground together, and Jongin sat up, pinning Kai under him, laughing.

Jongin couldn’t stop laughing, his legs on either side of Kai’s waist. After a second, Jongin’s expression changed from happiness to apprehension, and he scooted off his brother. Kai sat up, his ears back, and Kyungsoo watched Kai’s face start to dissolve as his overstimulated emotions came spilling over. Jongin wrap his arms around his brother as the white cat started to cry. The twins sat on the grass holding each other. Kai’s shoulders wracking, and Jongin’s expression confused and worried as he stroked his brothers back.

“Kai’s been abused, hasn’t he?” Kris asked quietly. Kyungsoo looked up at the taller human.

“You can tell?”

“I have a few cats here that came from bad homes… his body language gives it away,” Kris said. Kyungsoo looked down at the video camera, and then turned it off with a heavy sigh.

“That cat has been through Hell,” Kyungsoo murmured. Kris looked down at him, and Kyungsoo put on a small smile before looking up at the blonde human, changing the subject, “So, tell me how you run things at this foster house.”


	9. Finale

 

Kris let Kyungsoo take over the kitchen. From the scraps in the fridge, the frozen bags of vegetables in the freezer, and whatever cans he could find in the pantry, Kyungsoo threw together lunch for all twenty seven foster cats, plus himself, Kris, Kai, and Tao, Kris’ personal cat.

When Kyungsoo leaned out the back door to call for lunch, Kai’s ears turned to target Kyungsoo’s voice, before he pulled Jongin off the ground and ran back into the house.

All the cats were so grateful for the home cooking, they were very respectful of Kyungsoo’s space, but some of them still came up and hugged Kyungsoo when they thanked him for dishing them up a bowl or plate.

Jongin and Kai both stood in the corner of the kitchen, eating from mismatched plates with different forks. Every person in the house seemed very pleased with Kyungsoo’s meal, and once everyone had eaten, Kyungsoo dished himself a plate.

By the time Kyungsoo had taken his first bite, the twins were both finished.

“There’s more left if you want seconds,” Kyungsoo said to the brothers. Kai and Jongin side-eyed each other, before Kai reached in first.

“I never turn down more food,” Kai admitted, and Jongin grinned.

Kyungsoo and Kai stayed all day. Kyungsoo helped organize a clean-up regime for the afternoon, and the foster cats pitched in, each one taking a small chore. The whole house was clean in no time, and the laundry was all being taken out to be done.

“You’re like a mother,” Kris laughed, “You just swept in here, and fed everyone, and cleaned the whole house,” the tall human laughed, “Next, you’re going to start making cookies and read them all a bed-time story right?”

“Hmm, no bedtime story, I don’t think we’ll be here past dark, but cookies sound delightful,” Kyungsoo said and he got up from the couch, where a little girl hybrid was showing Kyungsoo all of the shapes she could make with a cat’s cradle string. Kai and Jongin had run off together somewhere.

“You’re joking,” Kris deadpanned. He followed the black haired human into the kitchen, and Kyungsoo preheated the oven.

“Do you have flour, sugar, and cinnamon?” Kyungsoo asked as he helped himself to the kitchen he had just cleaned, opening the fridge and pulling out sticks of butter. Kris opened the pantry and took the baking ingredients out from the top shelf.

“Not chocolate chip, right?” Kris asked, holding up a bag of chocolate chips.

“No. Snickerdoodles,” Kyungsoo said, and shook his head, “no chocolate for kitties.”

Kris leaned back against the fridge with his arms crossed over his chest as he surveyed the smaller human pulling out mixing bowls from beneath the counter.

“Man, you’re adorable,” Kris commented, “Jongin is going to be so happy with you.”

“About that…” Kyungsoo started, as he located measuring cups, “How much will you charge me for Jongin?” Kyungsoo asked, “I have my checkbook in the car.”

“Jongin is staying here, and he’s one of my fosters, but he’s not adoptable,” Kris said and Kyungsoo’s eyes snapped up to meet Kris’, “Kai is in control of his documentation. He can’t be adopted, because he owns his own title,” Kris explained, “If Jongin wants to go home with you, he will. No cost to you.”

“How does he own his own title?” Kyungsoo asked, “The laws about hybrids owning their own lives are still touchy.”

“Jongin can tell you,” Kris said, then he turned to look out the back door of the kitchen, “They’re outside,” Kris said under his breath before he opened the back door and called for Jongin.

The two cats came bounding back up to the house and Jongin entered the kitchen first.

“Have you shown Kai your shoe box yet?” Kris asked. Jongin’s ears jolted upright and he turned to Kai.

“Stay here!” he said, “I have stuff to show you,” Jongin ran out of the kitchen and Kai wandered closer to Kyungsoo, looking down at the ingredients he was working with.

“Cookies?” Kai asked as he rested his head on Kyungsoo’s shoulder lightly.

“Mm-hm,” Kyungsoo answered. Kris smiled at the pair from behind his hand, and Jongin came bouncing back into the room again, an old shoe box in his hands. He set the box on the counter, and Kai left Kyungsoo’s side to go see what Jongin had.

Jongin opened the cardboard box, and the first thing he took out were two small leather collars, one black and one white, both old and worn from age, and on their way to looing more grey than black and white.

“Oh my gosh…” Kai gasped and he picked up the white collar, “my first collar,” he whispered. It even had his original tag still on the loop.

“I found it on the front porch the morning you ran away…” Jongin murmured. Kai lifted his wrist and held out the black cat collar dangling there.

“This is my current collar,” Kai said.

“I noticed that,” Jongin said and he touched the tag and flipped it over in his fingers, the bell tinkling lightly, “hard not to notice that you jingle everywhere you go,” he teased.

“I like the sound of the bell…” Kai defended, and put his hands down. Jongin reached into the box again and pulled out two small stacks of papers, both with rubber bands around them.

“I own all of my paperwork, and all of your paperwork,” Jongin said, “Original certificates, pedigree papers, our identifications, all of it. When grandpa died, he left everything to me and you, and there was a huge court battle over it because a hybrid couldn’t own himself, let alone a sixteen year old hybrid. So grandpa’s lawyer fought for me, and when I turned eighteen I was emancipated, and I got these files back, proving that I was a free cat, who owned himself. After that, I got a portion of Grandpa’s estate back.”

“The house?” Kai asked. Jongin shook his head.

“No, I lost the house, and basically everything in it, but I have a large chunk of money to my name. I can’t touch it, but it’s mine.”

“Why can’t you access your money?” Kyungsoo asked. Jongin turned his attention to Kyungsoo.

“It’s in a holding account. The state thought it was ridiculous for a hybrid, who’s not a full human, to possess all that money. They were just going to take it all away from me, but grandpa’s lawyer fought for me, like I said, and the money was put into an account for us. I get a check every month, like an allowance, but I’m not a full human and I can’t possess all that money,” Jongin said, looking at Kai again, but then he looked back to Kyungsoo when he finished, “Once I get adopted by a human however, and he signs my registration forms, all of my assets would then belong to that human. Only he would be able to tap into that account in my name.”

“How did Grandpa…?” Kai asked under his breath. Jongin looked at Kai, then back down at the documents in his hand.

“He was getting old. One night he got a little sick… and the next morning he was gone,” Jongin swallowed, then looked back at Kris, “I wanted Kris to be the one,” Jongin said changing the subject, “but for some stupid reason, Kris doesn’t want me or my money,” Jongin said playfully. Kris snorted.

“I have a cat, thank you very much,” Kris said, “I don’t have the room in my heart for a second— third even! If you count Kai and you together. And three cats is too many cats,” Jongin rolled his brown eyes.

“Says the man with _thirty_ cats,” Kai laughed.

“You’re also too crazy for me,” Kris said.

“You’re right about that one,” he sighed, “I’m just too much cat for you,” he joked, then looked to Kyungsoo. The shorter human was almost done mixing the cookie dough by now, “I’m wondering if I’ll be too much for you too,” Jongin said, rather suggestively, “That is, if you really are taking me home with you tonight.”

“My home was open to you long before today,” Kyungsoo admitted, not acknowledging the flirt, “If I can handle Kai’s crazy, I’m pretty sure I can handle yours too. I just hope you’ll be ready to follow the rules of my household.”

Jongin turned to Kai and grabbed his shoulders, beaming.

“I’ve imagined this moment for a long time,” Jongin said to Kai, “but I didn’t think I’d get my brother and a handsome master all in one day,” Kai grinned happily, and knocked their foreheads together, then flicked his eyes over to catch Kyungsoo’s.

“He is pretty handsome, isn’t he?”

“I’ll say,” Kris stated, giving Kyungsoo a look, before turning and walking out of the kitchen. All three pairs of eyes followed him, before Kyungsoo turned back to the cats, trying to look unaffected, but a slight smirk was forming at the edge of Kyungsoo’s lips.

“After the cookies are done, we can start driving home.”

“Where is home?” Jongin asked.

“Seoul,” Kyungsoo answered, and Jongin’s face lightened, his tail flicked.

“Perfect! That’s where Grandpa’s lawyer is. His number is right…” Jongin said and poked through his shoe box again, “here!” Jongin said and pulled out a business card, “Before we leave, can we go to Busan, to where our Grandpa is buried? I have to tell him I finally found Kai.”

Kyungsoo looked up at Jongin and then to Kai and he couldn’t help but nod.

“Of course we can,” Kyungsoo said.

 

~

 

Jongin said his goodbyes to the foster home cats with only a couple tears in his eyes, but especially when he hugged Tao. The taller frosted hybrid hugged him back tightly, whispering a goodbye in his ear. Jongin held out a hand for Kris to shake, and Kris slapped his hand away and pulled him in for a hug.

“I’m so happy for you both,” Kris said, “Good luck on your next adventure,” the blonde human looked to Kyungsoo, “I’ll be in Seoul around Christmas time, and Tao and I would love to come visit you all,” Kris said, Kyungsoo nodded.

“We’ll look forward to seeing you,” Kyungsoo said, “Come on, boys.”

Kai opened the back door and climbed in, Jongin following him. The only things Jongin brought with him were his shoe box, a backpack with what little clothes he owned, and a napkin with some snickerdoodle cookies on it.

It took an hour to get to the cemetery in Busan, and Jongin directed their car through the road that curved through the vast and empty yard of headstones.

“Park here,” Jongin said, and Kyungsoo pulled over, under the shade of a tree. The brothers got out, Kai holding Jongin’s hand the whole time, “Do you want to come?” Jongin offered. Kyungsoo shook his head.

“No, I’ll meet your Grandpa next time,” Kyungsoo said, “you two go on.”

Kyungsoo turned off the car and watched the two cats walk hand in hand through the standing headstones, after a while they stopped at one. Kyungsoo watched the darker of the two, Jongin, lower himself into a bow on the grass. Kai followed suit, dropping to his knees as well.

Eventually the boys sat back, and Kyungsoo could see them talking. He could see their ears react, and see their tails flick, but he couldn’t hear anything. He watched Jongin put a hand to his mouth, and watched his ears go back. Kyungsoo wondered if Kai was telling him about where he was these past years.

Jongin slowly sank into Kai’s lap, and the two cats held each other. After countless minutes, Jongin sat up, wiping his face on his jacket sleeve. Jongin stood, and pulled Kai to his feet as well. They embraced again, holding on for long drawn out heartbeats, before they both released and walked back to the car hand in hand.

Kyungsoo had been waiting for about a half hour.

The two cats slid into the back seat and Jongin grabbed the bag of tissues that had been discarded by Kai earlier that day.

“Are you two okay?” Kyungsoo asked.

Kai nodded wordlessly as he took a tissue. Jongin blew his nose.

“Yeah,” the black Angora answered, “we’ll be okay.”

The drive home was quiet. Both of the boys had fallen asleep in the backseat, Kai’s hand curled around the tip of Jongin’s black tail, and Kyungsoo’s pillow resting between them. Kyungsoo turned on the radio softly, and even sang and hummed along to some songs he liked.

Today had been an emotional roller coaster for them all. When Kyungsoo finally got to Seoul, he was exhausted. He felt relieved when he pulled into the parking garage below his apartment building.

“We’re here,” Kyungsoo called softly. Jongin jolted awake, but Kai took a bit more time, sitting up and rubbing his eye.

The three made their way to the elevator and Kai pushed the button to the fourth floor.

“I’m so hungry,” Jongin said.

“Me too,” Kai chirped.

“I am so tired,” Kyungsoo admitted, “but I suppose we should eat something right?”

When they got to Kyungsoo’s front door, Kyungsoo told Jongin the rules.

“Shoes off in the front hallway, no food outside of the kitchen or dinner table, and if you ever want to leave just tell me where you’re going first,” he said as he unlocked the front door.

Immediately, Kai was pulling Jongin inside. The happy white cat, in his familiar home, danced as he showed Jongin each room. Kyungsoo put the duffle bag in his room, and returned to the kitchen to reheat something for dinner.

Jongin and Kai both ran up to him when Kyungsoo called for dinner. Both of their eyes were wide and happy, pupils round and relaxed. Kai quickly scarfed down his food, and then excused himself to go to the restroom. Jongin’s eyes followed him as the white cat left, and the second the bathroom door shut, Jongin turned to Kyungsoo with a sly smile.

“Thank you for dinner,” he started, “Thank you for everything, actually,” the black twin added.

“You’re welcome,” Kyungsoo answered with a polite smile, as he started putting dishes in the sink.

“I really love the way this place smells,” Jongin said with a contented sigh, “Every night from the day I was born, Kai and I slept in the same bed. Even in the laboratories, they put us together, because we were the twins. When Kai was… taken away from me, I developed insomnia,” Kai swallowed, “I sleep for maybe an hour, and then I wake up, and can’t go back to bed. I try and take naps during the day, but I find I slept my best when I get to sleep next to someone,” the bathroom door opened and Kai came back into the kitchen.

“I think you’ll be sleeping very well from now on,” Kyungsoo said, and smiled at Kai as the white Angora entered the kitchen again, “Are you two going to stay up late tonight?” Kyungsoo asked as he held out his arm for Kai to hug him.

Kai crept forward, ducking into Kyungsoo’s form and hugging him around his waist.

“Probably…” Kai murmured, “We have a lot to talk about.”

“For sure,” Jongin agreed.

“Feel free to stay in the guest room, both of you,” Kyungsoo said as he let go of Kai and turned to Jongin, opening his arms up for the newcomer as well, “I’m going to bed, I have work tomorrow.”

Jongin came forward and hugged Kyungsoo, taking in a big whiff of his human’s scent, and pulled the smaller human flush to his body. Kyungsoo shut his eyes as he stood on his toes to hug Jongin back.

“Welcome home,” Kyungsoo murmured into Jongin’s ear, before he let go. Kyungsoo rubbed the top of Kai’s head for a second as he walked out of the kitchen, wishing them both a good night.

 

~

 

On the first official day of Jongin and Kai starting their new lives together, Kyungsoo woke up alone in his bed, but didn’t mind it so much when he poked his head into the back room and saw two identical cats twisted around each other in the guest bed. They had each other’s tail in in their hands, and Kai was even pressing Jongin’s glossy black tail to his lips.

Kyungsoo went to work before they awoke, leaving breakfast covered on the stove for them to eat when they woke up.

When Kyungsoo got home that first day, Baekhyun was over and Kai, and Jongin, and the Havana brown were all playing Nintendo games together. Kai and Jongin looked the same age right then. Both of them had had a good night’s sleep, and no doubt Baekhyun wore catnip to come play today, but the energy in the apartment was glowing with the sounds of happy hybrids.

Kyungsoo smiled, and thought to himself that he could definitely get used to this.

 

~

 

On day two, when Kyungsoo returned from work, the apartment was awash in orange from the sunset, and Kyungsoo saw Jongin, and only Jongin, sitting on the white couch with his back to Kyungsoo.

“Hey,” Kyungsoo greeted, “Where’s—?”

“Shhhh…” Jongin hushed, and pointed down to his lap. Kyungsoo slowly crept over and leaned over the back of the couch. Kai was asleep, his head curled into Jongin’s lap, facing away from him, and Jongin was softly brushing his hair back with his fingers.

“We talked a lot today,” Jongin said barely above a whisper. Kyungsoo didn’t respond, but he put his hand on Jongin’s shoulder, “I kind of… knew that Kai wasn’t in a good place while we were separated. I could feel it, but… I didn’t think it was that bad…” Jongin’s voice was so hushed, Kyungsoo could only just make out what the hybrid was saying, “There’s a lot of stuff he hasn’t told you about…” Jongin said and then looked up at Kyungsoo, “He doesn’t think you’ll be able to understand, because you’re not a hybrid.”

“There might be some truth to that,” Kyungsoo shrugged, his voice low. Kai shifted a little in Jongin’s lap, repositioning his legs and falling deeper into sleep. Jongin was quiet for a moment, the two of them looking down at the creature, person, being they loved the most asleep in his long-lost brother’s lap. An eleven year old dream come true.

“I always looked up to him like an older brother when we were little kids…” Jongin whispered after a while, “but now… it’s my turn to be the older brother.”

 

~

 

Kai’s microchip surgery came the following Wednesday, and even though the procedure was simple and would only take a half hour, Kyungsoo took the day off for it.

Kai was shaking as they arrived at Yixing’s clinic, not knowing what to expect, and not having had eaten anything since dinner at six pm yesterday. Yixing said that the sedative would make him sick if he had anything but water in him.

Kyungsoo filled out the paperwork in the waiting room, and Minseok, Yixing’s intern, explained to the three of them how the procedure would work, that they would give Kai a mild sedative so he wouldn’t feel anything, they would implant the chip, and when it was over he’d be a bit loopy for a few hours because of the drugs.

They decided to put the chip in Kai’s right hand, even though the left is the proper place, because of Kai’s scar from his previous chip. Kai wanted someone to hold his hand when he went under, and Jongin volunteered to go back with him.

Kyungsoo finished the paperwork and left the clipboard up at the front desk with the receptionist, and he reclaimed his seat to wait.

After fifteen minutes, Jongin came back into the waiting room with a smile on his face.

“He was freaking out over nothing,” Jongin said, “Dr. Zhang even told me after he sedated Kai that the drugs weren’t necessary, and that the chip could have gone in without medication, but they wanted to make sure Kai wouldn’t throw a fit,” Jongin said, “They literally just put the chip into a gun, and shoot it under the skin of the palm.”

“Is he awake?” Kyungsoo asked.

“Awake, yes. Aware, not so much,” Jongin snickered, and Minseok came through the door with Kai in a wheelchair a second later, his right hand was bandaged.

One of Kai’s ears were up, the other was halfway down dopily. His eyes were big and glassy, and when he saw Kyungsoo he giggled and grinned.

“ _Kyu’soo_ ” Kai slurred, “I have no legs,” he laughed. Kyungsoo snorted through his nose, and stood up.

“No legs?” Kyungsoo asked, “Well, then it’s a good thing you’re in a wheelchair so we can roll you to the car.”

“Mm-hmmm,” Kai hummed with a nod. His head lolled forward and he had to roll his shoulders to get his head back up on them. On his face was a permanent grin.

“I want what he’s on,” Jongin said to Kyungsoo who shook his head.

 

~

 

The following weekend, Kyungsoo threw Jongin a welcome home party.

Baekhyun arrived on the dot with a bright gift bag in his hands, and immediately attached himself to the twins. Chanyeol came downstairs a couple minutes later with two gift bags, one black and one white.

Minseok and Yixing came, so did Chen with another big box of cupcakes in his arms, and Sehun and Joonmyun arrived for festivities. The humans brought the twins gifts (Sehun brought alcohol) and the party was going very well.

Kai was beaming brighter every day, and the two cats adjusted to each other, and to Kyungsoo, very well.

Today, Jongin and Kai were the center of attention, Jongin more so than Kai, which suited Kai just fine.

Jongin’s tail hadn’t stopped moving, whipping back and forth at gifts, and friendly faces, and the whole happy vibe in the house today. Kyungsoo had his camera around his neck and was taking pictures at every opportunity.

Chanyeol took a seat at Kyungsoo’s grandmother’s piano and started to play a soft tune, Baekhyun went to stand next to Chen, and the two of them counted a beat together on their hands and under their breaths before they broke out into song.

The whole apartment went quiet, and Kai and Jongin were humbled to speechlessness. Kai had heard Baekhyun and Chen had gorgeous voices, and Chanyeol’s deep harmonies in the background complimented them well. The song made the whole party.

When the cats finished, the twins had identical smiles on, they’re eyes disappearing into crescents, and they were clapping happily.

There was a knock on the door.

“It’s him!” Jongin yelled. Kyungsoo and Jongin rushed to the door, and let in Jongin and Kai’s lawyer, and older man with glasses, and a kind smile. He greeted everyone and apologized for interrupting their party. He pulled out new, crisp adoption forms for Jongin and Kai, and Kyungsoo signed each paper with an elegant, well-practiced signature.

The man beamed, and handed Kyungsoo an envelope.

“Here you are, Mr. Do Kyungsoo,” he sang, “that’s the bank statement for the boys’ account, and the payment card is in there too. Congratulations to you, and to the twins,” he said and turned back to the twin Turkish Angoras, “Your grandfather can now rest peacefully in heaven. God bless you all,” he said, before he took his leave.

The celebration picked up in full swing after that, and Baekhyun took Kyungsoo’s camera to take a picture of the three of them, a true family now.

Kyungsoo was in the middle, with his arms around both the boys waists, and all three of them were smiling. They took many more pictures, some with Jongin in the middle, some with Kai.

Cupcakes were had, presents were opened, and Sehun popped open a bottle of champagne. Baekhyun had low key stolen Kyungsoo’s camera and was taking a galore of pictures while the party continued, freeing up Kyungsoo’s time to spend with his twin hybrids, and enjoy the party.  Jongin asked Kyungsoo, with big, round eyes, if he and Kai could each have a glass of champagne, like the humans.

“In celebration!” Jongin reasoned.

“How about, you both _share_ a glass?” Kyungsoo reasoned, “I could hardly handle Kai when he was on drugs, I don’t know if I can handle both of you if you’re drunk.”

Jongin and Kai agreed, and Kyungsoo poured his cats a flute of gold champagne, a set Kyungsoo had only broken out for Christmas parties so far.

“Isn’t alcohol poison for cats?” Sehun asked as Kai took the glass delicately from Kyungsoo with both hands.

“Hmm, not always,” Yixing said as he sipped his glass, “All hybrids have different sensitivities to things like alcohol, milk, catnip…” the doctor said, and Kyungsoo was only half hearing it as he watched his cats sip the fancy alcohol.

Kai was curious at first, and Kyungsoo was expecting his face to shrink up with disgust at the taste, but Kai seemed to actually like it. When Jongin took a sip, he smacked his lips a couple times, took a second sip, and then sneered down at the liquid, his ears flattening back. Kyungsoo laughed.

“Tastes better than whiskey,” Kai said with a shrug and took a long swig. The two other cats were watching with jealousy and admiration.

“You’ve never had a tasty cocktail, have you?” Jongin asked his brother, “Like an appletini, or a sex on the beach?” the dark twin asked, and Kai snorted and handed him back the glass.

“Nope,” Kai said and licked his lips, “The first one sounded okay, but I don’t even think I wanna _know_ what that last one is,” Kai laughed. Jongin took another couple sips and handed it back to his brother, his face contorting with every sip he took, but it was like he was determined to see the drink through to the last drop.

“We should get actually drunk together soon,” Jongin suggested to Kai, but Kyungsoo was the one who quirked an eyebrow at the idea.

Kyungsoo was smart to only give them a glass to share, because both cats were acting a little rowdy when the party ended and the last guest left, Kyungsoo could tell that Kai was slowly reaching the point of burnt out. Both the cats were sitting on the white suede couch, giggling over something funny Jongin had said.

“Tired?” Kyungsoo asked and he came up behind them and slowly reached to pet the back of the white cat’s head and rub his ears.

“ _Hmmm_ ,” Kai purred, and leaned his head back, “A little,” Kyungsoo turned his attention to Jongin, and put his other hand on Jongin’s head, to rub the equally soft black ears, “How about you, Jongin, are you tired too?” Kyungsoo asked.

“Not really…” he muttered, and for the first time, Jongin absently pressed into Kyungsoo’s touch, his eyes slipping closed. Kyungsoo pet the black Angora’s ears and marveled at how lucky he was to have these two gorgeous cats as his lifelong companions.

For once, Kyungsoo decided to leave the clean-up for tomorrow, and he told the two cats that he was going to bed. He let go of both of their kitty ears and turned to walk to his room, when the brothers both called out to him:

“ _Kyungsoo_?” the meowed in tandem, their voices almost harmonizing. Kyungsoo turned to look back at them.

“We want to sleep in your bed with you tonight,” Kai said.

“Both of you?” Kyungsoo asked.

“ _Both of us_ ,” the twins said together. Kyungsoo chuckled.

“I’d love that,” the human answered.

That night, Kyungsoo fell asleep on one side, Jongin on the other, and Kai in the middle. When Kyungsoo woke up the following morning, he was oddly okay with the way the bedcovers were kicked off in the night, and that he had somehow ended up being the one in the middle. Kai was soundly asleep, his head on the pillow, and Jongin was on his left now, his arm thrown over Kyungsoo’s stomach. When Kyungsoo turned to look at Jongin, his eyes met sleepy brown ones, cracked open slightly.

“Sleep well?” Kyungsoo asked. Jongin’s lips stretched into a smile and he nodded, nuzzling his head into Kyungsoo’s shoulder. Kyungsoo pulled Kai tighter to him as well, and the white hybrid started to purr. Within a few second of Kai’s purring, Jongin joined in as well, and Kyungsoo closed his eyes.

He didn’t know what the future would bring for him and these two cats, but if Kyungsoo got to have mornings like this one, he would be able to face any hurdles that they came to.

 


End file.
